Today’s beautiful blue and yellow backyard wedding takes place at the groom’s family’s amazing waterfront estate on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Matt and Sayuri wanted a fun, casual backyard wedding with touches of elegance, and with beautiful blue florals, handmade details, and even some barbecue, that is just what they had! Lucky for us, Saleina Marie Photography was there to capture this fun backyard wedding, and I get to share it with you all today!
From the bride, Sayuri:
What (or who) helped you most in your planning process and/or on your wedding day?
My husband and I worked together throughout the entire planning process, which was usually amazing, but at times very challanging. I feel very blessed to have a husband that took a genuine interest in helping to create a celebration that we both loved. It was a truly rewarding. Luckily our wedding day vision was very in sync from the beginning! We were fortunate to have abundant amounts of help from family members, and delegated tasks early on (My Father-In-Law provided his home and resources, my Aunt hand-crafted the invitations, my Mother-In-Law hosted the rehearsal dinner and made our wedding favors, my Step-Father-In-Law officiated and my mom helped me with everything in between). It was a wonderful way to involve the family, which was extremely important to us. Also, the venders that we worked with were an amazing resource for support along the way. Alison Lum (our wedding planner/coordinator) was fantastic. She is an incredible problem solver, and her organization skills kept us right on track. My husband and I played a big role in most of the planning (which we wanted), but working with her enabled us to have piece of mind that nothing was getting over looked. Huge relief! Having her coordinate our wedding day was a life saver. It allowed us to relax and truly enjoy ourselves amongst our guests, not having to worry about anything!
What was the most important thing to you when deciding who to work with for your wedding?
Our wedding was held on my Father-In-Law’s estate, which allowed us to have very few restrictions (compared to many venues). That being said, it was very important to us to have the freedom to design our wedding in a way that felt right to us. When deciding who to work with for our wedding, we chose people who were flexible and supported us in carrying out our concepts. My husband and I both grew up on Bainbridge Island, WA and we specifically chose to use local venders. Our caterer, photographer, baker, videographer, transportation service, and florist were all made up of local small businesses. Not only did we feel like supporting the community was important, but it was comforting knowing that they did not have to commute to the island by ferry, at the height of the busy Summer season.
What was your inspiration for your wedding details and/or design?
The property has a very polished, yet rustic feeling with a Barn style house and immaculate landscaping. The basis of our design inspiration followed it’s lead. We wanted our wedding decor to make sense with it’s surroundings, and to play up it’s features. I spent a lot of time on Pinterest, wedding blogs, and in magazines to inspire new possibilities (I was kind of obsessed!). I have to give credit to our florist/designer most of all. Melanie Benson Floral was an incredible inspiration. She is a fabulous designer and floral genius, and was able to create decor options that I wouldn’t have even dreamed of. She not only understood what we wanted but she was able to materialize it beyond our expectations.
What was your favorite thing about your wedding?
My favorite thing about our wedding was getting married to my husband! He is the love of my life, and we couldn’t be happier to spend the rest of our lives together. Our wedding was such a perfect way to celebrate the beginning of our lives together with family and friends. From a wedding design perspective, my favorite part was the balance we found between informal and formal. I feel like we successfully developed an atmosphere that was literally enjoyable for every last guest who attended, creating an unparalleled energy. Amazing!
What is your best piece of advice for other brides?
The best piece of advice I can give to other brides was given to me by my photographer (Saleina Marie Photography). Take as many wedding pictures that you can BEFORE the ceremony. Although there is definitely something romantic about having the “first look” be at the alter, I was so happy we didn’t. I adored having a private “first look” moment with my husband (and photographer of course!) before all of the wedding craziness began. It felt intimate, and seeing each other eased our nerves. Also, a huge benefit of taking pictures before the ceremony (bride/groom pics, family pics, wedding party pic etc), is that your guests don’t have to wait for pictures to be taken, you don’t have to miss any of your own reception, and you will not feel pressured to hurry through them.
I love Sayuri’s advice about taking photos before the ceremony! And did you notice the blueberries at each placesetting? Such a great idea to add something extra to each placesetting- I love it!
So are any of you planning on doing your photos before your wedding like Sayuri and her husband did? What’s your plan?
Vendors who made it all happen…
Lauren
Latest posts by Lauren (see all)
- Newly Engaged? 10 Steps To Start Planning Your Wedding! - January 4, 2023
- How Much Do Weddings Cost? - January 3, 2023
- What You Need To Know BEFORE You Start Planning Your Wedding - January 1, 2023
loving this wedding and all the rustic touches! It’s so personal and well thought out! So inspired! :)
Oh my goodness, such a pretty a fun looking wedding! I love all the little pops of yellow mixed in with the blue and all the details look perfectly thought out. I also love the bride’s name…reminds me of one of my all time favorite books, Memoirs of a Geisha. :-)
So many fabulous details in this wedding!
What a cute wedding! Love that seating chart display.
Lovely shades of blue and so many fabulous details!
I love the blueberries at each table! Such a delicate little touch!
Love the rustic ideas and the directional sign
Absolutely love the wooden signs ‘I do’ and ‘We did’. And compliments to the photographer! Stunning pictures.