In my last post, I shared the story of our wedding day… how Ben and I, against all odds, found each other, blended our families, and celebrated with 30 of our closest loved ones. Today, I want to dive into the details: the style, the planning, and the little choices that made the day feel so us.
When I first started planning, I knew I didn’t want a traditional wedding. Instead, I envisioned something with a sexy, haunting vibe: a little bit fall romance, a little bit gothic. I wanted it moody, romantic, and completely unique. Pinterest quickly became my best friend in shaping that vision, and I leaned on it heavily while pulling everything together.
We wanted our wedding to feel special but also stay on budget, so much of this day came down to creativity, DIYs, and being intentional about what mattered most.
Invitations
One area I was determined to save money was invitations. I knew I could design something myself, and an evite felt perfect for a small wedding. I ended up creating a design in Canva that I absolutely loved — it completely captured the vibe of our day without costing a fortune.
Venue
At first, we toured wedding venues, but quickly ran into a problem: our guest list of 30 was too small. Most venues wanted to charge us for a minimum of 50 guests. It just didn’t make sense.
So we got creative. We decided to host our reception at our house, which instantly felt more personal. Ben, though, really wanted our ceremony somewhere separate and outdoors, and I’m so glad he pushed for it.
After considering a few options, we landed on Fieldcote Memorial Park in Hamilton. It was absolutely picturesque, with the fall leaves starting to change, and it ended up being one of the most affordable parts of our day. The bigger expense was renting chairs and catering, but it was worth every penny.
The Dress
From the start, I knew I wanted a shorter dress — and I wasn’t interested in traditional bridal boutiques. Instead, I scoured online shops and local stores and, truthfully, bought five dresses. Thankfully, they were all under $200.
One Revolve dress I loved turned out to be way too small, and a few others felt too “blah.”
But one day at Sherway Gardens, after finding a killer pair of shoes at Steve Madden, I wandered into Honey. The sales associate there was fabulous, and as I tried on dress after dress, they pulled one for me that changed everything.
It had sequins, long billowy sleeves, and an open back. It was extra in the best possible way, and it reminded me of my very first wedding Pinterest save.
I skipped the busy shoes and went with something simpler, because the dress said it all. To this day, I still obsess over it when I look back at our photos. And Ben’s reaction during our reveal was priceless.
Tattoos Instead of Rings
One of the most meaningful choices we made was to skip traditional wedding rings altogether. Instead, we decided to get tattoos.
I went with something more elaborate: a delicate vine design that felt feminine and symbolic, winding like the chapters of my life that led me here. Ben chose something beautifully simple and powerful: the date we met, inked in Roman numerals.
We actually got them done shortly after we got engaged, and honestly, it was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. These tattoos feel so much more permanent and personal than jewelry. They’re part of us, and every time I catch a glimpse of mine, I’m reminded of our story… our choice.
Decor
This was one of my favourite parts because it let me be creative. I knew from experience that flowers from a florist can be insanely expensive, especially once you say “wedding.” So I took a DIY route.
Armed with Pinterest inspo, I bought tons of faux florals from Michaels and made my own arrangements, garlands, and even a floral mirror piece.
My wildest project? A giant branch that had fallen from one of our trees. I decorated it with flowers and greenery… and while I still don’t know if it was ridiculous or genius, it was uniquely ours.
For fresh flowers, I sourced most from our local Fortinos and then bought a few “wow” blooms from a florist to elevate my bouquet and decorate our cake.
Since it was October and Ben loves Halloween, we wove in subtle Halloween touches from Michaels to give the day a moody, romantic edge.
Guest Favours
This was one of my proudest DIYs. For the adults, I made custom whisky bottles. I found small bottles on Amazon, filled them myself, and designed custom labels. They looked amazing and our guests loved them.
For the kids, I created little black gift bags with age-appropriate goodies: bracelet stacks for the teens, toy cars and stickers for the younger ones, and even a pacifier clip for the baby. We also borrowed a Polaroid camera for guests to snap photos for our guest book… such a fun touch.
Food & Cake
We hired Topowe Catering & Events out of Burlington, and they blew us away. The food was incredible… even the kids devoured it. They also provided a bartender and made our simple yet perfect chocolate drip cake, which we topped with a few fresh flowers. It was everything we wanted without going overboard.
Beauty
I knew right away that I wanted Bubbles and Blow to do my hair. During my trial, we experimented with a few styles, but when my stylist started playing while we were chatting, she landed on a look with half my hair back and fishtail braids. It was bohemian, elegant, and completely me.
My makeup was done by Jennie, who has a special place in our family… she used to be Mia’s daycare teacher years ago. She’s since built a career as a makeup artist, and she not only did my makeup beautifully but also stayed for the day to help with our five kids. Truly a lifesaver.
Of course, my look wouldn’t have been complete without my nails and tan. For my nails I went to Nail Pro in Burlington I chose a chrome ombré with delicate jewels across my ring finger… a little sparkle in place of a traditional ring. And when it came to my tan, there was only one person I trusted: Shaina of YourTan in Burlington. She gave me the most flawless, natural glow for the day, and I truly wouldn’t have felt the same without it.
Photography & Music
Finding the right people to capture the day (both visually and emotionally) was so important to us.
Our photographer was actually a family connection: Julia Battista Photography, who happens to be my makeup artist Jennie’s sister-in-law. Julia captured exactly what we had envisioned. The photos were moody, romantic, candid, and sexy in all the right ways. They weren’t stiff or overly posed… just us, our kids, our family, and all the in-between moments that made the day what it was. Looking through the gallery feels like reliving the whole experience.
For music, we had Courtney Taylor, an incredible singer who we found when she performed at The Block Co. in Burlington, perform at our ceremony. Her voice set the tone perfectly as guests mingled and as the ceremony began. It added so much emotion and intimacy to the day… it was one of those details that made the entire experience feel elevated and unforgettable.
Looking back, I couldn’t be happier with how everything came together. We didn’t overspend, we stayed true to ourselves, and we created a day that was filled with love, personality, and little touches that meant the world to us.
It wasn’t traditional, it wasn’t flashy… it was ours. And that made it perfect.
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