Cape Cod Wedding - Alicia & Shez - WellWed Cape & Islands - Spring / Summer 2011

{photography} Davina + Daniel {reception site} Holden Inn

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wellfleet, massachusetts

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Any bride with plans for a do-it-yourself wedding hidden up her laceadorned sleeve knows that a true DIY event requires a lot of help from family and friends. That was the case for Alicia and Shez, who took on a lot of DIY projects in the months leading up to their Wellfleet wedding, all from their cozy apartment in London.

Alicia and Shez were eager to make their wedding a playful, unconventional, and whimsical celebration of their love that was also an honest reflection of their personalities. They had originally met at a “fancy dress” party in London, at which the guests wore costumes representing different tube stops in the city. “We were together for about two years, crossing London to stay over at each other’s houses, before we moved in together,” says Alicia.

While hiking together on the west coast of Wales one weekend, they began to talk about marriage, and both were surprised at how serious the discussion became. “Then and there it was decided that it felt like the loveliest and most natural thing for us to do,” says Alicia. On a bluff overlooking the bay, the couple celebrated with sandwiches and ale, totally content and completely in love.

Months before the wedding, the bride-and-groom-to-be set to work on their homemade decorations, starting by creating about 500 feet of vibrant bunting. Luckily, many of their friends were happy to help, and the bunting ended up being one of the best décor elements of the day. The couple’s invitations were lovingly hand-drawn by one friend who happened to be an artist, and printed on a gocco by a second friend — one in London and one in New York, who had never met yet worked seamlessly together.

The morning of the wedding, several family members crowded the kitchen at Alicia’s grandmother’s house, busily baking cakes and pies for the celebration.

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Alicia and Shez created their own table numbers using different patterns of quirky fabric and making them into mini-flags. “We sewed all the number flags with a friend and then painted cereal box cartons to make them stand up straight,” says Alicia. They placed them in antique soda bottles that Shez filled with sand he had collected from Cahoon Hollow Beach the day before the wedding.

One of the biggest challenges for Alicia and Shez was not the DIY projects themselves, but the problem of transporting the results across "the pond" to Massachusetts. Despite their best efforts, many of their planned items were simply impossible to ship overseas.

“I think there were quite a few things I would have liked to DIY but didn’t get the chance because we wouldn’t have been able

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Bouquets & boutonnieres: Flowers by Mary provincetownflowersbymary.com Catering: Terra Luna theterraluna.com Event Rentals: Be Our Guest, inc.

BeOurGuestpartyrental.com Invitations: Paul Andrews & Kate Hibbs drawings.me.uk Photography: Davina + Daniel Photography davinaplusdaniel.com

The morning of the wedding, several family members crowded the kitchen at Alicia’s grandmother’s house, busily baking cakes and pies for the celebration. Though the celebration was moved indoors due to rain, and a few pieces of décor got wet in the process, the room looked gorgeous nonetheless. “I felt a bit sad to see the decorations I’d spent months making slowly disintegrate, but it looked completely beautiful anyway,” says Alicia. Guests helped themselves to a decadent dessert buffet that boasted rich English-style trifle, cupcakes, cakes, and pies.

Alicia and Shez were pleased with the outcome of all of their hard work. The day was joyous and ended up being a true celebration of their personalities — and their love. However, both know they couldn’t have done it without help. As Alicia explains, “This wedding was very much a product of many lovely people pitching in.”

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to transport them,” says Alicia.

There were some successes, though, such as the ribbons Alicia had come across at a local shop in London and had shipped to Massachusetts; the ribbons were given out to guests to double as name tags and place cards, a charming and homey touch.

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