1. Real Weddings

A Rustic New England Wedding at Springbrook Field in Camden, Maine

For Whitney, nothing would do but to have her wedding in her hometown of Camden, Maine. I have a lot of local pride, she says of her wedding to Tom. T

For Whitney, nothing would do but to have her wedding in her hometown of Camden, Maine. I have a lot of local pride, she says of her wedding to Tom. The two celebrated on a family friend's private residence with amazing coastal views. It is a perfectly pristine spot on the ocean where you can stand in the field or on the beach and not see another house for as far as the eye can see – it feels like Maine 100 years ago, she says.

A friend of the bride's mother helped create all the floral arrangements for the wedding. I wanted all the bouquets to look very lush and like they could have been picked out of a garden with lots of greens, Whitney says.
Guests were greeted with welcome bags full of local fare including snacks and local maps.
I had the invitation stationary custom made by a woman I found on Etsy with a company called Saint John Street Press in New Haven, Connecticut. I wanted something that was handmade in New England, says Whitney.
Each bridesmaid wore their hair in a unique style that ranged from soft chignons to intricate braided creations.
We wanted everything to look lush and natural, Whitney says of the white and green dahlia arrangements at the reception.
The tables were long farm tables made locally in Maine. We purchased all the white linen napkins for the wedding (we now have a lifetime supply) and hand wrote all the guests names on manila tags that were tied around napkins at guest’s seats, says Whitney.
I had seen an antique silver filigree wedding belt at the North Carolina Museum of Art and knew it would be perfect for the wedding, Whitney says. Luckily I was able to find a beautiful one with an antique dealer in LA which even had green enamel details to compliment the green in the groomsmen outfits and green of the flower arrangements.
Whitney's all-white bridal heels were accented with an intricate embroidered design.
The reception was held in a field overlooking the ocean beneath a romantically lit tent.
Since the wedding took place in October, I wanted the bridesmaids to wear long silk dresses so they would be warm enough if it was chilly. My bridesmaids live all over so J. Crew was perfect because they could each visit their local bridal boutique and pick their dress, says Whitney.
Tom is not very interested in desserts and the one dessert he actually does like is carrot cake so we decided to have a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting for the wedding cake, says Whitney. We wanted to keep with the rustic natural Maine look so we kept the decorations fairly simple and topped it with a crown of mussel shells we had collected from trips to the nearby islands.
The flower girl was Tom’s niece, Lilly. We had her dress custom made in navy silk and lace by a company in England. She carried a small Nantucket Basket down the isle and scattered white rose petals, says Whitney.
I had always said if I was ever proposed to, I didn’t want anything elaborate and would like it done simply over breakfast, says Whitney. Tom decided to do it over breakfast at my favorite Camden breakfast spot, but it ended up being a little more over the top -- he organized every detail with the restaurant owner, my family and friends, and even had the proposal videotaped.
The groom and groomsmen wore green corduroy pants, white shirts, blue blazers, custom made ties from Seigo in New York, and navy loafers from Rancourt, which were made in Maine, says Whitney.
Escort cards were displayed with ripe red apples for each guest.