Victorian Garden Styled Shoot {Renee Brock Photography}

On this frigid day (it is 1 degree Fahrenheit here in Vermont today), there seems nothing better than to let my imagination sink into this gorgeous garden wedding inspiration. Inspired by the youthful imagination of Alice in Wonderland, this talented team of vendors, led by Marisa Negri of Chancey Charm, put together a visual feast replete with mismatched vintage teacups and table settings, lush floral design by violet vendor Gertie Maes Floral Studio (we love the floral belt – a fresh spin on how to wear flowers). She used wildflowers with classic peonies and other flower selections which double as tea ingredients. The whimsical jewelry, sweets, and oh that cake! Anne Kathleen Cakes made it to accent the tablescape perfectly – I think any bride would be so happy to have a cake like that. And what better way to top it all off than to have live artist there creating watercolor and oil paintings of the day!? This truly is a dreamy Victorian wonderland.

From the Designer {Marisa Negri}

The idea for this styled shoot first came from the youthful imagination of Alice in Wonderland. This is prevalent in little details from the names on Sarah Sorrentino’s paper goods to the soft blue eyed, blonde haired look of our model bride. We even had the pleasure of working with Vanessa Gilbreath, owner of Vintage English Teacup, who is actually from the same town in England as the author of the Alice in Wonderland novel! From that base inspiration grew a dreamy Victorian Garden styled shoot with heaps of whimsy and femininity. 

I scavenged my family’s collections of antique jewelry, mixing silver and gold pieces together among the three models. I love juxtaposing chunkier pieces with demure ones, colored jewels with metals. The Sentimentalist provided beautiful hair accessories which perfectly complimented the jewelry and also dressed our models in three gorgeous Claire La Faye dresses. Claudia Mejerle is beautiful person, inside and out. A talented hair and makeup artist, she is an expert at harnessing and highlighting natural beauty. She styled all of the models differently. One with whimsical waves, another with an almost Marie Antoinette reminiscent braid. It’s all about marrying the unexpected. Variety is the spice of life.

I’m not fond of rules, and we broke lots of them. I worked with Tracy Jarvis of CRUSH Event Rentals to pull together a variety of mix match vintage chairs in a neutral color palette to line the table. Instead of the overdone long estate table, I pulled three round tables together and draped them in insanely gorgeous cream ruffle linens with brown stitching from Nuage Designs. Rather than using typical linen napkins, I thought it would be fun to use vintage hankies. And boy did Vintage English Teacup have a selection for me to choose from! I could have browsed Vanessa’s collection of colorful dainty hankies all day! I placed them on the table haphazardly and then set the mix match vintage silverware atop the hankies as they pleased – no rhyme or reason. Some place settings were color-coordinated with soft color palettes of pastel yellows and celery greens, while others showcased bold prints atop bolder prints. With all of the vintage plates, tea cups, and saucers, I knew we had to bring tea to this garden party. I really wanted everything to be not only beautiful but also functional for true working inspiration. I found a vintage tea box and conceptualized custom labeled tea bags as escort cards. Foglio Press executed the vision to perfection and beyond. Foglio Press also created the most beautifully feminine and unique ceremony program I’ve ever seen. The program was made of five rounded paper pieces tied together with a sheer ribbon so it actually fanned out. It brought an even more Victorian style to the garden wedding shoot.

See the behind the scenes video of this Victorian Garden Wedding Styled Shoot from Almost Reel Films on Vimeo!

Photography: Renee Brock Photography / Design & Planning: Marisa Negri for Chancey Charm / Venue: Cator Woolford Gardens at the Frazer Center / Videography: Dejavu Films / Artistry: Nicole Kutz / Floral Design: Gertie Mae’s Floral Studio / Vintage Place Settings: Vintage English Teacup / Vintage Furniture Rentals: CRUSH Event Rentals / Cake: Anne Kathleen Cakes / Mixology: Lyght House Cocktails / Paper: Foglio Press / Linens: Nuage Designs / Hair & Makeup: Claudia Mejerle, makeup artist / Dresses & Hair Accessories: The Sentimentalist / Modeling: Courtney McGann; Cassi Moye; Elizabeth Thorpe