A Picnic in the Park

The Riverfront Pavilion at Eagle Point Park is surrounded by large trees that create an intimate canopy of lush greenery — the perfect location for our Picnic in the Park.

The pavilion’s stately natural stone columns made a lovely setting to frame the tables that were set outside under the building’s extra wide roof.

Justin, the groom, is here next to this limestone wall anxiously awaiting Gina’s arrival for their first look.

The adorable wedding party. Julie’s pale blue bridesmaid dress coordinates perfectly with the guys’ tan suits and blue ties. Bright yellow flowers ties everything together. Gina’s high-low dress is a simple and elegant twist on the classic wedding gown’s hem length.

Julie’s jewelry was simple earrings and a coordinating bracelet. The yellow rose bouquet is a bright pop of color compared to her pale blue dress.

As guests walked up to the pavilion, they were greeted by the guest book table and family tree. The wedding hostess then directed them around the building to the ceremony location.

The family tree was adorned with screen printed photos of the wedding couple’s parents, grandparents, and other immediate family placed in embroidery hoops strung on thick wire. Ivory die-cut labels describe the photos’ images.

Guests signed a hand drawn tree on a scroll of paper in lieu of a traditional guest book. Instructions for this were typed on the mint green antique typewriter. Next to this was a bouquet of brooches collected from the bride’s friends and family.

A table for gifts greeted guests with a welcome banner and antique doilies. Another brooch bouquet sat beside the card suitcase.

The yellow suitcases were the bride’s grandmother’s. They made perfect vessels for cards and the wedding program fans.

The wedding day was a warm September day, and these large square programs doubled as fans. On the front was the order of the ceremony, and on the back was a word search and other games to play.

The ceremony was held on the outdoor patio of the pavilion overlooking the Mississippi River. Breathtaking for sure.

I love this large old tree that framed the ceremony space. Simply beautiful.

These dapper young men were the ring bearers. Don’t you just love their suspenders, bow ties, and caps? They slowly pulled the flower girl in a wagon down the ceremony aisle.

The flower girl was pulled by the ring bearers in an antique wagon. Her blue gingham dress coordinated with the pillow that she sat upon. I love the teddy that rode with her, although clearly, this flower is more interesting than the bear!

The ceremony was bathed in beautiful sunlight streaks and shaded by the large park trees.

We set up an ivory lace and burlap aisle runner for a simple & elegant look to compliment the rustic setting.

Detail shot of the couple’s wedding rings

15-20 signs were throughout the park grounds showing where guests should meandor, or walk, to find their way. After the ceremony, guests made their way to the bandshell for the cocktail hour. They enjoyed a live band, hors d’ oeuvres, and drinks.

Tall cocktail tables with white linens set up in front of the bar & band.

A photo booth had been set up between two trees on the path towards cocktail hour. It was a table with simple props, white fabric backdrop, blue and yellow macrame, and the bride’s aunts snapping photos.

Super cute image of the happy married couple in the photo booth!

The band Santah came from Chicago to play at the wedding cocktail hour. It was lovely!

Hors D’ Oeuvres

The wedding’s signature cocktail was delicious, and was one of the most popular drinks of the day.

Brooke managed to snap this quick photo of Gina and I in between all my coordinating responsibilities.

This is one of my favorite photos of the whole day. I managed to arrange a private concert for the happy couple after asking all the guests to go to the pavilion for dinner. Gina said listening to the band with only Justin was one of her best moments of the whole wedding day. I’m so glad we were able to make that come together for you.

The pavilion ready for guests to arrive and for dinner to get started! The sun setting created a lovely glow.

The picnic tables are all set for dinner. We had assigned rows of tables for seating for ease of access.

Craft paper and games for the kids tables.

Cathy’s floral arrangements were lovely!

Each person knew which seat was theirs because we had wrapped their silverware with their name. The menu was printed on vellum and shared on the plates.

The sweetheart table for Gina and Justin had a lovely blue gingham tablecloth.

The china, decor, and stemware was picked out especially for the happy couple.

One of the couple’s friends sabered a bottle of champagne before toasts. It was pretty amazing to see her slice the top of the glass bottle clean off!

Toasts are always a special and emotional time for the happy couple.

Assorted pies were served to guests in lieu of wedding cake, fitting the picnic in the park theme to a T!