Tell us a little about yourselves!
JJ likes to say we met through “real life Hinge.” We were both at a mutual friend’s party in Madison, WI. in 2011, but neither of us even remember meeting that night. We saw each other periodically throughout the years because of our mutual friends, but did not start dating until we were both living in Chicago in 2015. We still live in Chicago with our dog, Clementine, and two cats, Dewey and Frank. Our favorite thing to do is make food for our friends and hangout on our back balcony with a bottle of wine.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
Washington Island is a small island off of the Door Peninsula in Wisconsin. While mainland Door County is a very popular tourist destination for Midwesterners, you have to take a ferry to the Island and it has a much quieter, rustic atmosphere. My maternal grandparents first came to Washington Island in 1971 and members of my family have spent summers there ever since. It’s where so many magical memories reside: it’s where we got engaged, where Chelsea’s mom and stepdad got engaged, and it’s where we hope to bring our children one day. There was no other place we imagined getting married. We are so grateful that we had friends willing to travel so far for us.
How many guests did you have?
We invited 136, and about 100 attended.
What was your budget?
What I can tell you is that our budget doubled during the planning process. We vastly underestimated how much it would cost to create an event space in an open field and have it look pretty.
Tell us about your outfits.
When I began to imagine what we would look like on our wedding day, I knew I wanted our looks to be vintage or at least vintage inspired. During the shopping process I was struggling to find a dress that I was in love with, and my mom suggested I try my grandmother’s wedding dress. I tried it on with my aunt and mom and, although it was far too small on me, I knew it was the one. I wasn’t originally planning on disconnecting the sleeves from the dress, but the seamstress pointed out that I might want to be able to move my arms - I’m grateful I took her advice! I chose a simple, waterfall style veil to mimic the high-low hemline. I was lovesick over Manolo Blahnik’s Carolyne bridal heels, but they are so expensive! I found a pale pink pair on Poshmark for a good deal and pounced on them right away. My beaded bridal purse was my grandmother’s bridal purse.
My second dress, with its oversized bow and bell shape, was a nod to the 1960’s - the same decade my grandma was married. I had these beautiful opera gloves to wear with my second dress, but it was way too hot to wear them! My one regret was not putting them on - when else will I wear them?! I purchased the Soulier Martinez metallic silver heels for another wedding earlier in the year. They were so comfortable and just the right amount of disco so I decided to recycle them for my second look.
For JJ’s look, I was inspired by photos of Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg. While JJ didn’t end up going full Gainsbourg - his custom double breasted ivory suit with tortoiseshell buttons evokes that fashion era. His pink and white striped shirt was a reference to our pink and red color scheme. The loafers he wore were purchased secondhand from TheRealReal. I pointed JJ in the direction to go, but JJ has excellent personal style and chose all the details himself.
We both love clothing so this was probably our favorite part.
My bridesmaids wore varying shades of pink in dresses selected by me. The groomsmen wore light tan suits, their own. JJ's mother embroidered monogrammed pocket squares for each of the groomsmen as well.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
We wanted our guests to have a total Island experience during the short amount of time they were there. To convey the importance of the location, we created an entire visual language rooted in Washington Island iconography for the website, stationery and signage. Door County is known for its sour cherry trees, so we used cherries in almost all of our designs. The red and white stripe motif was meant to mimic the stripes on the Island’s Cherry Train and the awning of the popular mainland restaurant Wilson’s. Our escort cards were pull-tabs (the Midwestern version of a scratch off that are commonly sold in bars). Each dinner table was assigned an Island icon: cherries, sandhill cranes, trout, daisies, or stars. I painted a scene of the Island’s daisy spotted fields and Moonlite pine trees for our invitations. I made buttons with the different Washington Island ferries drawn on them and it was so cute to see our guests wearing “their” ferry’s pin around. Every element of our wedding was inspired by Washington Island.
We wanted everything to be made with love. JJ’s mom embroidered all the dinner napkins with our guests’ names and the cocktail napkins with our “C&J” cherry icon. She also made the adorable (and delicious) sour cherry kuchen that we had for dessert, based on a family recipe. JJ’s sister Emma designed the stationary for her own spectacular wedding and I can tell you that without her help I would not have been able to complete it all. I personally designed every single paper product related to the wedding, and JJ created all the cocktails. Even if they did not directly have a hand in folding napkins or assembling table numbers, all of our family members were a part of our day.
Nostalgia was maybe the most important element, though. I was able to spend the morning at my aunt and uncle’s Island house, where I have spent so many summer vacations with my family. My bridal look was inspired by my mom’s mom, Virginia, who passed away in 2018. I was so happy that I was able to wear her wedding dress and purse on my wedding day. My Dad passed in 2019 and his hand-tied fly was hooked on my bouquet. I have many memories of fishing with him on the island and to commemorate that there were trout on most of our stationary. I got to spend the Thursday before our wedding assembling programs and sipping cocktails with my sister in law, Emma. Our photographer was able to take some photos of us on the bench dedicated to my grandparents at Schoolhouse Beach, which is also where JJ and I got engaged.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
I really wanted to make sure that we got the red and white striped tablecloths. We had to have them ordered especially for us, but I knew they would make a huge visual impact without a ton of table decor. My sister and I always wanted to ride the Island’s tour train, the Cherry Train, as kids and never did. We both agreed that my wedding day would be the day! The Cherry Train was one of my non-negotiables and it was totally worth it.
JJ wanted to ensure that we had topnotch cocktails and wine stocked at the bar. He created both of our signature cocktails: a cherry amaro spritz and “ the Clementiñe,” an orange-y mezcal margarita named after our dog, Clementine. He also sourced some great natural wines from Diversey Wine in Chicago.
One of the local bars, Nelsen’s Hall, claims the title of “Wisconsin’s longest continuously running bar” thanks to the supposed salubrious qualities of Angostura Bitters. It’s customary to take a shot of bitters at Nelsen’s to honor its survival through prohibition and sign a “Bitters Card” as proof of completion. We knew we wanted to toast to our lives together “ ‘til the bitter end” with a shot of bitters rather than champagne. (I’m happy to report that one of our mini bitters bottles is now a part of the collection behind Nelsen’s bar.)
Any tips for couples getting married?
If you are planning on doing any DIY: make sure you have a schedule and, most importantly, stick to the schedule!
Book the Planner! Hiring Rachel from Pink Door Events was probably the best decision we made.
Remember that it’s the one day in your life that all of your loved ones are in one place. Their presence is what makes a wedding magical. This is antithetical to a lot of advice people give, but JJ and I have the rest of our lives to spend together. We wanted to make sure that we enjoyed every moment with our friends and family, not just each other.
Get something cute to carry your beverage around in…I regret that I’m clutching a seltzer can in so many of the photos.
Wear the gloves, no matter how hot you are!
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
We were lucky to work with so many amazing vendors.
Our photographer, Laura from Xo Me Studio, was the first person we hired. Her photographs have this beautiful kinetic energy to them, and have none of the staleness that I associate with wedding photography. We didn’t hire a videographer, so Laura’s camera is the only lens through which we can remember our wedding. She artfully captured all of the ephemeral joy in her photos. I’d also like to mention Laura’s second-shooter, Amaya. She had the challenge of shooting a group of people who are really adverse to getting their photos taken: JJ and his groomsmen. You would not know how difficult her subjects were by looking at the photos. Both Laura and Amaya are such creative people and it was inspiring to watch them at work.
Platinum Band was incredible. We hoped that every single person would be on the dance floor and the band really helped motivate people to get out there. They learned one of our favorite songs, “I Love You Always Forever” by Donna Lewis, and we were able to end the night with that song.
Lori from Crave Cuisine was such an attentive vendor, and the meal was delicious! The entire meal was cooked onsite and served family style - we got a lot of compliments on the food.
I don’t think our Island wedding would have happened without the help of our wedding planner, Rachel from Pink Door Events. Planning a wedding on a small island is very logistically complicated. And we had some additional hurdles: a venue cancellation, several last minute guest cancellations, a neurotic bride with a very specific vision. Rachel made me feel confident that our day was going to be an organized and seamless experience for our guests - and it was! Plus, she’s a great hang.
Mary from The Old Potato Farm was so gracious to let us completely take over her family’s land for five days to set up. My brother built a table on site to cover the farm’s burn pit and JJ’s dad was in their barn everyday assembling the bars. We had great experiences with all of our Island vendors, but if you’re looking to get married on the Island…be sure to reach out to Mary.
Photographer: Xo Me Studio @_xo_me_studio | Planning: Pink Door Events @pinkdooreventsdc |
Flora: Folklore Florals @folklore.flowers | Ceremony & Reception Location: The Old Potato Farm Washington Island, WI @theoldpotatofarmb | Celebrant: Close friend Nicholas Bruhn | Hire: Event Essentials @eventessentialsmadison | HMUA: Wide Eyed Bride @wideeyedbrides | Catering: Crave Cuisine @cravecuisinedoorcounty | Bar Services: Pink Door Events @pinkdooreventsdc | Cake: by JJ’s mother | Stationery: by Chelsea | Entertainment: Platinum Band @bandplatinum | Cherry Train & Transportation: Washington Island Ferry @washingtonislandferry | Ceremony Dress: Grandmother’s 1961 Wedding Dress, altered by Silver Moon @silvermoonchicago | Reception Dress: Prea James, from Belle Bridal Atelier @bellebridalatelier | Suit: Arthur & Lucca, Chicago @arthurandlucca | Veil: Purchased from Silver Moon in Chicago @silvermoonchicago | Chelsea's Sunglasses: Celine @celine | Engagement Ring: Viltier @viltier | Wedding Rings: Cartier (JJ) & Antique (Chelsea’s great-grandmother’s wedding band) @cartier | Shoes: Vintage (JJ) (Chelsea Ceremony) Manolo Blahnik @manoloblahnik (purchased used via Poshmark @poshmark ) & Reception Soulier Martinez @martinez | Purse: Chelsea's Grandmother