From their photographer Lace/Hanky Photography: “This bride was so amazing, spunky, and downright fresh! Covered in elegant tattoos, she personally hand designed, cut, and illustrated every decoration and dessert that passed by her guests. Because she and her military husband could not afford the traditional presents and frivolities, Gina took matters into her own hands (quite literally) and created an aesthetic scene that evoked their funky and fun personalities. Gina is an inspiration to any bride that wants to create a memorable and unique atmosphere that all guests can remember and enjoy!”

Did your wedding location and date hold a special significance for you?

Our wedding date and location will always hold a special place in our hearts.  In planning our place and date we found the location, Fox Hollow Gulf Club, to be the perfect setting.  The rolling hills of the golf course and everything in the full bloom of spring, it was beautiful!  I love that our venue was out in the country away from all the busy city life, so people could come out, relax and enjoy themselves.  As for our date (May 21, 2011) it wasn’t chosen for any reason in particular, but my husband (I love to say “husband” now!) had graduated from the University of Minnesota and graduated from the ROTC program the night before our wedding day.  So it was such an eventful and life changing weekend for both of us.  There was so much happiness and so many memories to keep from that wonderful weekend.  May 21st which was once just a date set on the calendar for planning is now a very special day to the both of us that we will always cherish!    

Tell us about the details of the day.

As for the details of the wedding day, I knew right away that I wanted to put a ton of handmade details, fun colors, and hints of vintage into the big day.  Another one of my favorite things to do is go through my family photo albums of their weddings for meaningful details.  I tried to have our wedding cake resemble that of my Grandma and Grandpa’s wedding cake from the 1940′s with our vintage cake topper and many layers.  I used vintage fonts and numbers wherever possible in the invitations, table numbers, and the seating chart.  I absolutely love color and with spring on the rise, I knew I had to involve lots of color in to our day.   

How was the wedding day?

The wedding day was the best day of our lives!  When planning and going through all of the hard work I was always hoping in the back of my mind that I could say that as I’ve heard many women say it before.  And without a doubt it was most definitely the best day of our lives.  Every last detail pays off, and it is so fun to just sit back and enjoy it when your big day arrives!  The weather consisted of thunderstorms, and magically just as we were leaving the church the blue sky and sunshine came out to our surprise!  It was so unique and gave everyone a chance to mingle outside on the golf course at the reception.  

Do you have any advice for couples planning their wedding?

Make a fun inspirational collage of things that make you happy and wedding details you love. It will really help you get a feel for the style of wedding you wish to plan. Just always remember that after all that planning, when the wedding day comes, you really just need to take everything with a grain of salt and laugh at the little things. On our wedding day, just after I walked down the aisle he stepped on the train of my dress, and you could hear a big ripping sound. I just tilted my head back in laughter and the congregation at the church followed in laughter. I really think it set the mood for our evening.

Any final thoughts?

Always remember throughout the planning that your hard work will pay off on your wedding day!  

Vendors:
Photographer: Lace/Hanky Photography
Cake: Coborn’s Bakery of Elk River
Flowers: Shauna Kober
Invitations: Handmade by bride
Caterers: Russell’s on the Lake
DJ/Band: Midwest Sound and Light Shows
Ceremony: Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church
Reception: Fox Hollow Golf Club
Dress: St. Cloud Bridal & Boutique