Jessi & Mark's Circarnival Wedding | Circus Carnival Photos by Wild Saffron Photography

I know Jessi from the pole community. After seven years together, she and her boyfriend Mark decided it was time to tie the knot. They may have taken the slow and steady route with their relationship at large... but when it came to wedding planning, they certainly did not. 

Jessi told me the day that she booked her venue at Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum that she'd like my help with the planning. And then, conveniently, dropped the bomb on me that they'd booked the venue for only six short weeks later. Oh, and their total budget would be $1500. And $600 was just used toward the venue. And the wedding would be just days after Jessi and I both performed in a pole showcase--for which we'd be spending much of our time rehearsing. Nopressureoranything. 

She told me she'd like a vintage circus/carnival theme... which was lucky for everyone involved because I'd already thrown a circus themed baby shower and had some "stuff" still at my disposal. 

I'll be posting a rather exhaustive look at all the DIY details that went into this fun-on-a-budget wedding. But for now I wanted to focus on the stunning and (you won't believe this but it's true) first-time-shooting-a-wedding photos from our photographer. 

I had previously shot a pinup shoot with a new-to-me photographer, Sharon of Wild Saffron Photography. I was beside myself with awe for the set we shot and asked Sharon first if she'd like to shoot the wedding--for free. I knew it was a long shot, but I also knew I'd help to make sure the pictures turned out great for Sharon's portfolio to help her get a foot in the wedding photography biz. I was hoping she'd see it as a mutually beneficial event. And, to my (and my bride's) absolute delight, she did. Sharon is a spectacular human and even let us get ready at her house!

 

 

Our friend Ashley from TnT Hair Salon in Cape St Claire did Jessi's hair based off a sketch I drew up and sent to Jessi one day. To save the bride some dough I lumped my makeup artist service and a wedding dress I just so happened to have on hand into my wedding planning fee. 

 

 

By sheer luck the wedding gown was a perfect fit for Jessi and she didn't need any alterations or even any pinning in place. All we added was some red and white striped ribbon from Michael's that I pinned around the waist. The dress was originally from David's Bridal but was altered years ago to have the sweetheart neckline. I also supplied the birdcage veil (which I already had from a previous event and was an inexpensive $18 from Michael's anyway). I made the bride's pinwheel fascinator (click for a tutorial).

  

Speaking of pinwheels... this giant pinwheel was handmade using the same steps as the pinwheel fascinator tutorial linked above and made an excellent photo prop. I also handmade Mark's pinwheel boutonniere. 

 

 

Nicole of Inflation Sensations REALLY brought some magic to this wedding. My husband and I built giant popcorn boxes out of plywood and Nicole swept in and added a giant 'popcorn' balloon arch over the entryway to the reception connecting the two boxes. (I'll have more pictures of this awesomeness in my next post featuring this wedding's details!) I'd seen some balloon animal yard stakes on Amazon that I thought would be a cute addition to the wedding, but the cost of them added up quickly. It took me longer than I'd like to admit to realize that I'd be working with a talented balloon artist who could make these for me--and all I'd need to purchase were wooden dowels from Lowe's to stick into the ground. With Nicole's help these were super inexpensive and looked great lining the aisle of the ceremony. After the ceremony they also doubled as fun photo props (and, much to our surprise, as weapons for some rambunctious children?). Being able to shoot their own circus-carnival version of American Gothic was unplanned but awesome! If you're in the DMV area, you can book Nicole for weddings, birthdays, and corporate events.

 

Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum turned out to be the perfect location for this wedding. The barn pavilion worked great for the circus-carnival theme. The weather was great, luckily, so we were able to use the surrounding grounds and scenery for the ceremony and photos, but I think the venue could work well even in rainy weather just by housing everything in the barn pavilion. Plus it was a super in-expensive $600, which is a pretty good bargain anywhere, but especially in Maryland. For the ceremony we used an open space outside of the barn and framed the I-Dos between two large trees. Between the trees I (read: "my husband") hung a canopy purchased from the children's section of Ikea that I had on-hand from the previous circus baby shower and hung underneath it yellow curtain panels that I've had since college and were originally purchased from Wal-Mart. 

The bride's mother supplied the flowers. She had the bouquet made and brought me budget-friendly red carnations. I arranged the carnations in vintage milk glass vases that I already owned and topped them with pinwheels.

The reception was a blast. There was a lemonade stand, a circus themed candy bar, a popcorn stand, a cotton candy machine, and a kissing booth (that my husband built and we all (me, the husband, and our bride and groom) painted. The popcorn and cotton candy machines were both borrowed. Guests played games of "ring toss," "pitch-a-pouch," and "kill-a-can" for prizes of goldfish-in-a-bag soap. To stretch the budget, the wedding was not catered. Instead, guests all brought their favorite dishes for a potluck. People generally scoff at the idea of a potluck wedding, but in the right setting I think this is a perfect choice for the bride and groom on a budget. The bride's sister made the elephant-topped cake herself (which I'll feature in my next post). 

 

The corn-hole game was borrowed. It was not carnival or circus themed, but I covered it with red and white striped wrapping paper to give it a more worthy appearance. The mini decks of playing cards were purchased from the bargain bins at Michael's. I wasn't sure if they'd be a big hit, but by the end of the reception they were all gone. (I asked my husband to set them up, by the way... and he delivered with this intricate playing card tower. He was also a great help in dutifully drinking all of the beers for the ring toss game.) In my next detail post on all the DIY-goodness of this wedding I'll be diving in deeper on all these circus-carnival wedding crafts, but Sharon did such a great job at making my handy work look beautiful that I thought I'd feature some photos here as well. 

For all my hard work, I must admit that the best part of this wedding was the general feeling of fun and love between the bride, groom, and their friends and family. Guests came dressed to the nines--as clowns, bearded ladies, strongmen, and in general vintage loveliness. Guests (and the pastor) donned clown noses for the ceremony.

Yes, this wedding was put together in under six weeks. Yes, the budget was (and remained) under $1500. And YES, Sharon of Wild Saffron Photography is now booking (paid!) weddings. Between weddings, engagements, boudoir, and general shoots, Sharon is now booked out for months. I'd highly recommend her for your upcoming event... but make sure you book in advance!

Ro-MAN-ce for Men. DIY Chocolate Dipped Beef Jerky

I wouldn't say shopping for women is easy. But I would say there is certainly more variety when looking for a romantic gift. So when Valentine's Day, Father's Day, a birthday, or Christmas roll around, it can be hard to find a romantic gift for your man without making him want to gag. I think we all know there are a few things you can get your man as a romantic gesture, but if you're in it for the long haul you might be running short on ideas, so here's a new one: DIY Chocolate Dipped Beef Jerky

It's quick, easy, and inexpensive. Here's how:

1. If it's around Valentine's day, eat an entire box of chocolates to yourself. This is really important.

You'll be using the heart shaped box for your jerky. Don't even worry about the calories, this is for your man.

2. Gather your [other] supplies.

You'll need:
-A large bag of beef jerky

-Dipping chocolate (I got mine on sale at Michael's for $1.99 per bag. I bought red, bright white, pink, and dark chocolate and had a LOT left over. If you just want one color, one bag will be more than enough.)

-Dipping chocolate boxes (This is optional and is honestly a waste of money as I paid $5 for a package of three little paper boxes. BUT, sometimes spending $5 is worth it when the alternative is cleaning caked on chocolate out of several bowls when you're in a hurry.)

-Sprinkles (Also optional. I think the jerky that didn't have sprinkles tasted better, but I wanted a little somethin' extra visually.)
-A baking sheet
-Wax paper
-Cupcake liners
-If you foolishly decided against eating an entire box of chocolates to yourself, you'll also need some sort of box for your finished jerky. Amateur.
-Stuff to [re]decorate your box so it's something your guy actually likes. (This is also optional, but come on, don't be lame. I went with robot and heart foam stickers from Target.)

3. In small quantities, melt the chocolate.

Put the dipping chocolate in your dipping box or bowl and heat in the microwave for one minute at half power. Take out and stir. If not fully melted, return to microwave for 30 second intervals at half power and continue this process until melted.

4. When I dip you dip we dip? Dip that jerky.

Work in small batches so your dipping chocolate doesn't harden before you get your jerky dipped. Place each chocolate dipped piece on a wax paper covered baking sheet.

6. If you're sprinkling, do it now before the chocolate hardens.

I thought it tasted better without the sprinkles, but they did look nice and my husband said he preferred the ones with sprinkles because they had an extra crunch. 

7. Let the jerky dry for an hour or so. 

8. Divide the dipped jerky into the cupcake liners and stick in a box.

I picked up cute ones from Michael's that were red and white with mustaches on the bottoms. 

 9. Decorate your box. 

I covered the design that came on the box with felt stickers from Target. 

10. Make your man's day.

I used the same stickers on the heart shaped box to decorate my husband's card...

...and to make my own cake topper decor. I used a Wilton cake pan to make this cake with a heart in the center. Unfortunately, my cake filling wasn't very successful and when I cut into it, raspberry filling oozed out everywhere. 

DIY Super Bowl Party Snack Stadium. Ahem, that's SNACKADIUM.

I know it's cool when chicks are into cars and football and can kick your ass at poker. But I'm not cool. I like makeup and Taylor Swift and Clueless. So my point here is that I don't don't give a furniture store about football. Or the Super Bowl. But the one glorious light at the end of the tunnel that is football season? THE SUPER BOWL PARTY.

I have no idea who played in last year's super bowl. But I can tell you who played in the year before that's bowl because of the glorious Snack+Stadium=Snackadium I created. In honor of #throwbackthursday AND #flashbackfriday (because in real life who knows when this will go up)... here it is:

And here's how to make your own:

Cover a large area with foil. Place baking sheets in the center. I used one large one and one small one from a set of three. Use foil to partition off the end zones. Start building the walls. I used Twinkies, cucumber sandwiches and toothpicks.

Fill the walls with dippin' stuff: chips, crackers, pretzels, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, celery, etc. I didn't use anything to divide the different snacks--just stuffed 'em in there. 

Fill the field with guacamole and end zones with other types of dips. I used queso on one end and spinach dip on the other. Then I enlisted boys to line the field with pulled apart string cheese lines.

Since I had enlisted knowledgeable man help, I also had them set up little smokies as my football players (complete with little cheese helmets attached with toothpicks) into some semblance of an actual football formation. I'm told the little smokie back in the Patriots' endzone--aka the spinach dip--was Brandon Jacobs. 

The field goals were created by cutting up Slim Jims, assembling them with toothpicks, and shoving the bases into blocks of cheese buried in the dips. 

As for the decor, I attached some giant balloons and paper poms I picked up at the dollar store to the light over the kitchen island. The colorful paper fans were created by going through my old stockpile of magazines, ripping out red, white, and blue pages, folding them accordion style, and taping them together in a circular shape. I tied fishing line to them for hanging. 

Other handmade paper fans were taped to the wall around the less-spectacular food. Since both of the teams' colors were red, white, and blue... pulling together the decor was easy. Had I taken the time to really think this out I would have drug out the 4th of July decor and really gone wild. 

I don't remember what, if any, New England-y food we had... but we definitely had the New York angle covered. 

I'm not sure I'll have the time (or, honestly, the interest) in throwing a Super Bowl party this year...but writing this suddenly has me feeling inspired. Maybe a dessert snackadium this year?