Erin and Dan's colorful Apple Blossom Acres wedding was a DIY couple's dream. These two designed every part of their day to stay true to themselves as a couple and it really was a joy to witness.
I think I might have been just as surprised as Dan when Erin chose this as the way to let him know that he should turn around to see her in her wedding dress for the first time 😆. These two had the sweetest first look and were fully in the moment checking out each other's wedding day attire.
Erin, Dan, and some of their guests chose to camp on-site the night before and the night of the wedding. I think that's one of the things that makes Apple Blossom Acres as a venue so unique and so perfect for adventurous, outdoorsy couples. They also have an on-site Honeymoon retreat (a beautiful, modern camper) on the property for the newlyweds on Friday and Saturday night.
How beautiful is Erin's bouquet? They picked all the flowers for the bouquets and boutonnieres the morning of the wedding from a local flower farm in Ithaca NY. They said the farm allowed you to pick all the flowers you could fit in one hand for $9 and I couldn't believe it. They did such a beautiful job creating Erin's bouquet and it looks like they were scooped right out of a field (my favorite kind of bouquet) because they were!
One of the things I loved the most about Erin and Dan's wedding was that since they did a first look already, they chose to greet their guests as they arrived. Everyone had drinks and visited before the ceremony and it was really beautiful to witness.
Erin asked me beforehand if we could take their first kiss photo from the other side with their guests behind them and I'm SO glad she did because the sun was shining through the trees and it was absolutely perfect. I'm not always able to do this, it really depends on the setup of the ceremony space, but when I can, it really is stunning.
When I was taking these photos with Erin and Dan's flower girls, I couldn't help but think that it looked like these two cuties were their kids (they're not haha). Erin said people think that all the time and I think we can all see why.
Another thing I loved about Apple Blossom Acres is that the venue really is a blank slate, the beautiful open field is yours to do with as you please, and you can do as little or as much with it as you want. Erin and Dan worked with KMLyons events to have fresh flowers set up on the tables and Erin and her family DIY'd all the wooden flowers you see hanging from the ceiling of the tents (as well as the wooden flowers on their ceremony arch). They added such a beautiful and colorful, personal touch to the day.
So much of Erin and Dan's wedding was DIY, but they still had a planning team, which is definitely a must to ensure that your DIY wedding goes smoothly. Even though they made a lot of the decor themselves, to set it all up themselves too (setting up the tables, decorating, setting up the ceremony chairs, moving the ceremony chairs to the reception tent after the ceremony was over, etc.) would have been way too much to do themselves. For all of that and more, the planning team they hired was SO wonderful. Kayla and her team stayed on top of everything and were so friendly and helpful.
During the reception, we snuck away for 10 minutes for some photos during golden hour, and boy does Apple Blossom Acres have the perfect location for glowy golden hour photos. As the sun disappeared behind the treeline we were able to get some really sweet photos before heading back to their reception.
Dan's mom made their wedding cake and it's one of my all-time favorites. Both of them are very adventurous and outdoorsy and like to hike, so the colorful flowers on the bottom of the cake leading up to the mountains (and more flowers) on the top were beyond perfect.
Ithaca Wedding Photographer
Ithaca, NY is one of my absolute favorite areas to photograph, so if you're looking for a wedding photographer in the Ithaca area, I would love to hear from you.
A special thanks to all the vendors who made this day possible:
Venue: Apple Blossom Acres - 1922 Dryden Rd, Freeville, NY 13068
Erin's Dress: BHLDN
Dan's Outfit: Indochino
Planner: K.M.Lyon Events
Caterer: Balicravings
Cake: Dan’s Mom