Soft Pastels and Lush Florals Brought Romance to This Cincinnati, Ohio, Microwedding

For Nicole and Blake's Ohio wedding, it was important to the two of them "to have our wedding outdoors, as I wanted it to feel like we were in the middle of a romantic garden. We were originally supposed to have our wedding at Laurel Court, which is very reminiscent of the Biltmore and Versailles, but with COVID we ended up relocating to my parents backyard," Nicole says. "Growing up with an architect as a father, I've always loved the stone and granite building facades with beautiful manicured lawns and lush gardens. I knew traveling to the French or English countryside was out of the question for us, so I decided to transport us there via my parents backyard. Not only do I love the soft color palette that springtime offers us, but the month of May holds such a special place in my heart as my parents were married the 19th and my late grandmothers birthday was the 27th." When it came to the design aesthetic for their backyard wedding in Cincinnati, Nicole "knew I wanted a lot of contrast and texture with our colors, so soft pinks, aubergines, pale blues, greens, taupes and whites were the way to achieve that. Pink has always been my favorite color, so I knew that I wanted it to be the predominant color of our wedding. My bridesmaids were all given the same instruction when finding their dresses: my only requirement is that it's midi length and not neon, other than that, choose a dress that represents you! It was important to me that their personalities be present in what they were wearing, as that's why I love each of them individually - I just couldn't be more pleased with how incredible they ended up looking together!" 

Flowers were the central element in bringing Nicole and Blake's wedding vision to life. "Flowers were at the center of it all, as we just wanted to feel like we were in a European garden! I could have spent our entire wedding budget on flowers without blinking an eye! My bouquet was more amazing than I ever could have imagined! Emily, our florist, truly outdid herself, capturing every element I requested - peonies, ranunculus, stock, rose, tulips... just everything!" says Nicole. "I wanted to make sure we had contrasting colors and textures, which is how we ended up with different shades of pinks, blues, whites, greens and taupes. I wanted to keep it classic and simple, but make it special, so I figured a mauve organza runner would liven up an ivory linen well. I loved the intricacy and individuality of cut crystal bud vases going down the center of our family style table, accented with light blue taper candles to add a romantic touch. Our ceremony space came to life with a structure seemingly growing from the ground, accented with hand placed florals in varying hues. It was so romantic and beautiful, exactly as I had always imagined. We were lucky to have a beautiful backdrop full of mature trees, green grass, and a large pond."

While the couple's wedding ended up being a beautiful day, the planning was not without its hardships. The COVID-19 pandemic ultimately forced Nicole and Blake to make significant changes to their wedding plans. "COVID-19 has affected so many weddings this year, especially in terms of guest list. We only had 11 people in attendance at ours—including the two of us. I am so close to my entire extended family (hint: them surprising me the night we got engaged), so I really wanted to figure out a way to 'have them there' in spirit, without being able to physically have them there. I decided to print all of our grandparents, aunts/uncles, cousins, and friends wedding photos and display them on a table adorned with a beautiful La Tavola Linen, to represent all of the years of marriage that would have been surrounding us on our day had COVID-19 not hit. I actually added up all of the years, days, and months from each of our loved ones wedding date to our wedding date, and calculated that we had (in spirit) 489 years, 8 months, and 3 days of love surrounding us. It was a really special sentiment, and am so thankful I took the time to do a little addition and subtraction," Nicole shares. 

Even though only nine guests were able to attend Nicole and Blake's Ohio microwedding, family was still at the center of the wedding day. Nicole's "paternal grandmother wasn't able to attend our wedding as she passed away 4 years ago; throughout the whole wedding planning process, I was always dreading not being able to share the special day with her. My parents decided to gift me her wedding band, which she had gifted to my mom years ago as my dad had used it 32 years prior to create my moms engagement ring. It is so special to have a piece of her to wear every day, and share that with my mom on her finger as well. She and my grandfather would have been married 65 years the year she lost her battle to cancer, so I'm hoping it blesses Blake and I with just as long of a marriage. My maternal grandmother was able to attend, and she donned the same dress she wore to my parents wedding 31 years prior. The colors happened to match perfectly, and I just thought it was such a special touch. My brother is one of my absolute best friends, and I was lucky enough that he offered to officiate our wedding for us. It was his third wedding he has officiated, and if you ask him, it took longer to prepare for this one than the other 2 combined. It was such a special touch I will cherish forever."