Describe the vision/theme you had for your wedding in 5 words or less: Simple, elegant and meaningful

What are your favorite memories of your wedding day?
Bride: My favourite memory from our wedding day was having my 95.5-year-old Nana in attendance. She is my favourite person ever, but was quite unwell a couple weeks before the wedding. I am glad that she returned to full health and was able to attend our wedding ceremony and reception.
Groom: My favourite memory from our wedding day was visiting with our friends and family at our stand-up reception immediately following the ceremony.

Best wedding related decision: Our best wedding-related decision was to prioritize the wedding photography. We hired an experienced wedding photographer, who knew what she was doing and kept the whole wedding day on track.

Favourite detail: Our favourite detail was how we incorporated Huron University College into our wedding celebration. We met at Huron University College during our undergraduate studies and started dating there. We chose Huron University College as our wedding venue because we wanted a venue that was meaningful to us and our relationship. We also incorporated Huron University College into our wedding celebration by including the school’s colours in our flowers, the groom’s tie and socks, and the bride’s pedicure; and, by wearing our school pins that were given to us at our convocations in 2011 (bride) and 2013 (groom). We also made a donation to the school in honour

Advice for future brides & grooms: Simplify your wedding day as much as possible so that you only focus on what is meaningful to you. If you simplify, there will be less to distract you from what is truly important. Also, don’t be afraid to break with tradition. You don’t have to follow every single wedding tradition, especially if they are not meaningful to you. If you don’t like wedding dresses, you can wear something else (like a bridesmaid dress). You don’t have to wear something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. Instead, wear what you want or wear something meaningful to you (like your school pin). You don’t have to have a wedding party (you only need one witness each). You don’t have to have a long full-day wedding with a sit-down dinner, cake, speeches, and a dance. You don’t have to get married on a Saturday.

Would you change anything if you could do it all over again? Our wedding day went very well. It was hard to think of anything we would change. The weather was perfect; the venue was beautiful and so meaningful; and, the photographer was so helpful, experienced, and organized. If we could change anything about our wedding day, we would have had the flowers delivered to the venue instead of having the groom pick them up. It was a bit tricky for the groom and his best friend/witness to fit them into the groom’s car. They essentially had to play Tetris with the flowers to fit them in the trunk and back seat.

Best surprise of the day: We were pleasantly surprised when we were taking photos before our wedding ceremony and saw that the groom’s co-workers had made a large “Just Married” sign and had displayed it in a window in the office building across the street from our venue. Other great surprises included one of the bride’s undergraduate professors driving from his son’s graduation at Duke University in North Carolina the day before to attend our wedding celebration (he made it!) and a group of the bride’s McKenzie Lake Lawyers LLP colleagues taking an extended lunch break to attend our Monday afternoon wedding ceremony.

VENDORS:
Ceremony Location: Huron University College Chapel | Reception Location: Huron University College Great Hall | Officiant: Dr. Stephen McClatchie | Dress: The dress was a Jacquelin Bridals Canada bridesmaid dress in ivory purchased at Ballett’s Bridal in London, Ontario. | Flowers: Forest of Flowers | Hair: Zita O’Dwyer (Five Forty Hair Studio) | Makeup: Nicole Dupuis Artistry | Nails: Meg Trott of STUDIO H Artist Group | Caterer: Brown’s Catering (Huron University College) } Rings/Jewelery: Blue Nile (bride’s rings) and Nash Jewellers (groom’s ring) | Groom’s Attire: Moores Clothing for Men

WEDDING SONGS: 
Processional: “Prelude to a Te Deum” composed by M.A. Charpentier (performed by Huron University College organist William Lupton)
Recessional: “Hornpipe from the Water Music” composed by G.F. Handel (performed by Huron University College organist William Lupton)
The Signing of the Register: “Canon in D” composed by J. Pachelbel (performed by Huron University College organist William Lupton)