Katie and Kaine’s wedding took place inside a nursery in the final stretch of October. They wanted that autumnal mood, with witchy vibes and plenty of unique touches. The couple did lots of DIY to keep costs down, from the temporary tattoo station to the stationery, and the result was as personal as it was beautiful.

“We wanted our wedding to feel a little witchy, a little bitchy, and unabashedly us”, Katie said. “We chose a greenhouse venue and paired it with rich gem tones, handmade terrariums, taxidermy, and tarot cards to build something that felt like a garden witches fall wedding.”

Tables were set with taxidermy mice as centrepieces and tarot card–inspired numbers designed by Katie. The décor came together through hours of hands-on work. The terrariums were made with friends and family and the bouquets and boutonnieres were assembled by the wedding party using dried flowers.

Katie wore a floral covered Madi Lane gown, she always knew she wanted to wear colour, and Kaine chose a deep red suit which complimented her perfectly His wedding party followed his lead, made up almost entirely of women in suits. He wanted his closest people beside him, rather than choosing people by gender.

They skipped public vows. Before the ceremony, they met for a private first look and read what they had written to each other. “We hand wrote our vows to make them as personal as possible”, Katie continued. “Kaine cried, the chicken tried to eat my dress; it was beautiful.” Strawberry, the venue’s resident chicken, actually walked around the venue all day, which they loved.

Their planning process focused on keeping what mattered and letting go of what did not fit their budget. “Narrowing down the vision to what was affordable and attainable was difficult and sometimes sad because we had to let go or make concessions on some of the more fun but unrealistic wants on the wish list”, they explained. They chose to invest time instead of money where they could, accepting that some elements would be less polished or not included entirely. They didn’t have a cake, for example, but it wasn’t really missed.

“A wedding is what you make it”, the bride concluded. “The goal is to celebrate the love and unity between those getting married and the people they choose to keep close around them. Beyond that, the wedding should a reflection of your personalities and whatever makes you excited to take on such an event.”