1. Real Weddings

Hannah & Joshua: An Outdoor Wedding in Colchester, CT

After Josh Close found the perfect engagement ring at an antique show, he asked girlfriend Hannah Liverant’s father for his blessing, and the two kept

After Josh Close found the perfect engagement ring at an antique show, he asked girlfriend Hannah Liverant’s father for his blessing, and the two kept the secret for months. On a getaway to Martha’s Vineyard, Josh dropped to one knee. “All I could say was, ‘Is this really happening?’” Hannah says. “And, of course, ‘Yes!’” The Bride Hannah Liverant, 25, Middle school art teacher The Groom Joshua Close, 25, Medicinal chemist The Date July 3 The theme of Hannah and Josh’s summer wedding was inspired by Hannah’s artistic nature. “I thought the perfect representation of Josh and I would be colors that -- in their differences -- compliment each other,” Hannah explains. The couple chose a palette of blue-violet and yellow-orange, along with other shades of blue and orange. Hannah also took a design cue from the orange day lilies that were blooming in her parent’s garden right around their wedding date.

The party took place under a large white tent, with the trunks and limbs of the surrounding trees wrapped with blue lights.
Hannah and Josh exchanged vows they wrote themselves at the bride’s childhood home (where her parents still live), on the edge of an old apple orchard, facing a pond. “My uncle Scott generously built us a huppah, from which was hung cream colored chiffon panels and an archway of orange and blue flowers. Its legs were covered in leafy birch branches,” Hannah says.
The Flowers
The Ceremony Site
The Cake
The dinner tables were covered in shimmery purple-black linens and topped with lollipop-style rosemary topiary centerpieces, which were decorated with small white lights. Fitting the theme perfectly, orange menu cards in the shape of a lily were placed on each table.
Hannah designed her gown herself, with the help of seamstress Susan Allison Young. The dress was a three-layer ecru-cream silk charmeuse empire waist with a silk crepe base and a silk chiffon overlay. The gown also featured a delicate cowl neck that lead into two streamers trailing off the back of each shoulder, which framed the row of covered buttons stretched down the back.
The Escort Cards
The Hair