Sarah and Danny planned an incredibly unique and personal wedding that features a super fun combo of rustic glam! We love the juxtaposition of this style and are total dying over all the gorgeous images by Cory Kendra Photography. But we have to say...our jaws are dropping at that dress by Katie May!!!

What made the wedding special and unique?

I think what made our wedding so special and unique was the story behind all the details and how they came together. I always tell people that God orchestrated our entire wedding. From the dress, venue, and the attire, to the personal touches and vendors, his hand was upon it all. For me it wasn't just planning a wedding, it was a complete faith walk, trusting God with every detail and seeing him remain faithful all the way through. Being that I am not a planner this was one of the hardest things I've had to do, and I did it mostly on my own because my fiancé lived in Dallas. I wrote down every single detail with my mom one night and we prayed over that list, asking God to provide the right vendors, ideas, and help that I needed. He totally did that! And I shared my journey along the way with people. I was very open about it all because I wanted it to be a witness of how rad God is and how he does things that just blow your mind. He makes things happen that you just know there is no other way, except by him certain things worked out. So I think that is was what made the wedding so special and unique. Because to me it wasn't just about that one day, it was about the testimony of our lives. People had been following my journey and they witnessed how it all came together.

Tell us about the gown and where/how you found it!

My dress was probably one of the most talked about topics of our wedding, especially from my husband! He actually didn't even know it was backless until we were doing communion and he put his hand on my back haha! I love sharing the story behind it, because it encourages brides to trust God to lead them to the right one! Up until last year, I always thought I would go with a strapless mermaid gown. But a year before our engagement, I was scrolling instagram and came across this amazing backless dress. It was basically love at first sight and my mind was changed! As the topic of marriage came up later that year I started browsing for backless dresses on Pinterest. I kept seeing it but every link was a dead end to some copy-cat in China. Then about a month before we got engaged, my mom and I were praying about wedding details. The dress was #1 on the list. The next night I felt compelled by God to search pinterest again and so I did. I ended up finding a blog with a bride wearing a similar version of it and I facebooked her (crazy I know). She was SO sweet and didn't hesitate to tell me the designer, Katie May. The next day, I went to a shop that carried it and tried it on. I loved it and knew this was it! I tried on some others just to get the "experience." It's funny because I am such an indecisive person and my mother always feared finding the dress would be the hardest part. But surprisingly it was the easiest part because God led me straight to it.... almost. Now here's the part that just screams "total God moment!" I didn't get the dress that day because I didn't want to look totally crazy, being that I didn't have a fiancé yet haha! So I waited.... and then got impatient. Time was ticking. So I stepped out in faith and decided to make an appointment with the designer in her studio in LA. I called her on a Thursday and made the appointment for Monday. Well that Saturday, two days after I called, I got engaged!!!! I hadn't told him I found a dress or anything before this moment. But after he popped the question and I said, "YES", I followed with, "by the way I already found my dress!" Two days later I went to try it back on and decided to get the higher quality version of the dress. It was seriously so comfortable I could sleep in it. Which ended up being the EXACT dress I came across a year before! I put it on and knew that THIS was the one, made for me!

What were some touches added to make it personal?

Our theme for the weddings was DREAMS, that's what our initials spell together, and God speaks to me in dreams. I wanted the atmosphere to feel like a whimsical dream. Most of the décor and stylizing was a surprise for me. A dear family friend, who is insanely talented, was my "stylizer." Everyone raved so much about it, that now she started her own business, Sundrop Vintage. Anyways I told her a few things I wanted and envisioned and she made it come to life. Because I trusted her and knew this was her gifting, I tried not stress about this aspect. Which was a huge blessing! The color scheme, mixed metals, represented me and who I am. I make wire jewelry for a living and love silver, gold, copper, bronze, gunmetal black, and antique brass. I incorporated wire detailing in the décor. I bought my own flutes and cake knife and server and wrapped them with wire. I made my cake topper out of wire. All the boutonnieres were wrapped with wire, same with the centerpieces. I made my bridesmaids bracelets and my own jewelry as well. But don't worry I didn't go wire overload! I incorporated the colors in other things. Probably one of my favorite touches was my aisle runner. I came up with this idea to paint leaves metallic and swirl them down the aisle! And oh my goodness was it beautiful! I still use them in my house for décor! My family and friends helped me collect branches upon branches from different places when the trees were being pruned. I'm so stoked this vision in my head came to life and worked! It was truly unique. All the bouquets and boutonnieres had touches of spray painted flowers. One other touch that was so special and a surprise to me from Daniel and Katie May was a personalized love note on the tag inside my dress. Everything was seriously so beautiful; it really did look like a dream!

What was the most memorable part of the day?

There are so many memorable moments of that day. But I think for me, it was when I walked down the aisle to the song I wrote and recorded for him. It's called, "I Choose You." (It sounds like "Thousand Years") God had put that desire on my heart once we got engaged and I knew he would make a way for it to happen. How it all worked out is another story in itself! In all 8 years of dating, he had never heard me sing. Actually no one really had up to that point because I am extremely shy about it! On the night of the rehearsal, I told his brother what I was doing and asked him to whisper it in Daniel's ear right before I walked down. I didn't really tell anyone I was doing it because I didn't want them to be expecting it. No one even knew it was my voice till later! But it was such a vulnerable moment, like me bearing my soul, naked, in front of the man that I love and everyone witnessing it. It was my way of saying, "I love you so much and I choose you. I choose to face my fear because I love you and you make me want to be brave." It was the scariest thing I've done in my life, but I'm so thankful I did it and he treasures that moment too.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

Daniel and I went to the same middle school and high school but had never really met. Even though we had mutual friends, we somehow always missed each other when everyone got together. I left too early or he came too late. It just wasn't our time yet. Till one sunny day, May 2006, I headed to the beach with my two friends and Daniel was the driver. Our friends ended up ditching us and we hit it off. Fast-forward to 8 years later and we're married! The past 2 years we had been doing long distance. He moved out to Dallas to get a job with the fire department. They say distance makes or breaks you... it made us! Once we had been seriously talking about marriage, I kept saying he would have to be super sneaky because I'm hard to surprise. I LOVE surprises, but I also like to figure them out too haha. The struggle is real for him! Well I had been missing him A LOT that time and didn't think I would see him for another month! So one Saturday in April I got a text from his step mom asking me to go walk the dogs down by the pier with her. He was "at work" when I called and told him my plans for that day and he encouraged me to go. So I did. And the whole way there I was telling her all the ideas I came up with in my head of how he could propose. She was biting her tongue! I was clueless. We got to the pier and were walking up the stairs, towards this really beautiful view, when she took the leash from me. I had my head down and was distracted by my story I was telling her that I didn't see Daniel standing by the lookout! And then he said, "Hey there!" At first I didn't look up because I thought it was someone she knew, but once I did, I screamed! I ran, jumped into his arms, telling him how excited I was he came to surprise me. I just kept hugging him. Not even realizing how handsome and dressed up he was, my detective skills were not on point. I was still clueless. He had to say, "I have to ask you something!" And I was like, "what?" Still not getting it yet haha. Then he reached for his back pocket and I knew. I kept saying, "wait no, oh my gosh, wait what, is this real life?" He got down on his knee and said, "Sarah will you marry me?" I jumped up in the air and said, "YESSSSS!" And then continued to jump up in the air, which my father in law has plenty of pictures of me mid-air! It happened so fast and is still a blur, but it was indeed, real life!

Sarah + Danny * Wedding Film from AkrosMedia on Vimeo.

Vendors: Photography: Cory Kendra Photography // Styling, Decor, and Florals: Sundrop Vintage // Videography: Akros Media // Make up and hair: Genna Khein // Chalkboard art designs & graphics: Marta Darby // Banners & graphics: Heart Felt Banners // Jewelry, wine glasses: Wired for Freedom // Catering: Taste Catering and Cafe // DJ: DJ Keith Divel // Party Rentals: Pacific Party Rentals // Dress: Katie May