Did you know I hated my wedding day? I loved that I got to marry Paul but other than that it was an awful emotional unorganized day! I used to feel bad about it until I would mention that to people and many would say they felt the same way! Ha! For that reason this anniversary party appealed to me so much. Three years after their simple wedding (that they liked!) Drew and Lynette Danburry had a beautiful dinner party at a friend’s home to celebrate their anniversary. They have lots of talented friends who contributed the flowers and the cake (that cake!). Even the linens and dishes were borrowed. It’s all the party none of the pressure! The amazing Leo Patrone took these photos and I’m so happy to share them here. Vendor credits are listed below. Would you ever have a fancy anniversary party? Paul and I are coming up on 7 years and I’d love to have a do over!
Photography: Leo Patrone / Cake: Pink Peach Cakes / Flowers: Honey of a Thousand Flowers / Dress: Lynette Danbury / Event Design: Audrey Moore / Location, Linens and China: The Villa, Cedar Hills, Utah
Hannah @ Sparrow + Spark!
October 21, 2011
I actually loved my wedding day as we semi eloped to Italy (we took 7 guests!), but I would totally have a party now without the pressure of the Wedding Day. The reason we went to Italy was so I wouldn’t hate my wedding- does that make sense?! It was really simple- married, then a meal out.
I love this though, really gorgeous photography. One of the best parties I have ever been to was a 10th anniversary party!
jenni bailey
October 21, 2011
I am 100% having a do-over. I hated my wedding. Everything about it – even my dress. I let too many people have a say in the planning (because I sincerely wanted them to feel involved and important) and it ended up not feeling like it had anything to do with us. It was a nice, generic wedding and I started planning my do-over the very next day. I’m thinking we will do it in 3 years (on our 10th anniversary) and that way our girls can be included.
Glad to know I’m not the only one!
Denise Laborde
October 21, 2011
Jordan, I am so surprised to learn about your wedding day woes!
I believe in anniversary parties and have one every year. We haven’t had a great fancy one like Drew and Lynette’s but I can imagine planning one for a milestone year (5, 10, 15, 20, 60!).
It’s never too late to celebrate a marriage and I agree with you – all party, no pressure.
Bises
D
Heather
October 21, 2011
Weddings are waaaayyyyy to much pressure, and can turn into more about the EVENT than the person you’re marrying. I didn’t hate mine, but I planned it in about 3 months and didn’t sweat the details. I think you should definitely have a do-over…Paris perhaps? What could be nicer than that?
Stephanie@Geezees
October 21, 2011
I love the idea of a wedding do-over…i would just love for my kids to there for it.
Beautiful party….lovely pictures!!
Serena
October 21, 2011
Oh my gosh – me too! I always feel like I should say it was the best day of my life, but in reality all the pressure, and some unfortunate circumstances, made the day hard and not as enjoyable as I had always thought it would be. I always look back on my wedding day with a heavy heart although when I think about my marriage I’ve got a very happy heart! So this idea totally ROCKS. A complete do-over with only the good, happy stuff. Brilliant idea.
June
October 21, 2011
Of course! But I think the 25th or 50th are the legit events. Otherwise, ack, do I have to go to everyone’s wedding again! It was fun once, but it took up all my Saturday nights for about 5 years. It was lovely then, but I love my saturdays with my family now. And more gifts? Oh nooooooo
fanfamfun
October 21, 2011
I had heard that weddings are so much work and not much fun. So when my husband and i got married we did it at city hall in NYC. It was the best thing we could have done. I highly recommend it. Doing a nice anniversary party would be wonderful. No stresses 🙂 x
http://fanfamfun.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-to-get-married-in-new-york-city.html
Giuliag
October 21, 2011
I actually had a great time at my wedding, but I’d be up for a great anniversary party to give me a chance to plan something different – the ocean perhaps? We had croquet set up at our wedding and it was a great hit. Lovely pictures.
Laura
October 21, 2011
My husband and I are coming up on 7 years as well, and we too are not the biggest fans of our wedding. We were young and did what family wanted and what we felt we should do for our wedding. Small parts of it were “us” but overall, it wasn’t. I don’t really want a do over since parties aren’t even my thing, but I’m 100% confident that when our boys get married, we’ll encourage them to have the kind of wedding they want, and all we’ll care about is being able to take part in their special day.
Laura
October 21, 2011
Love it! So great to see a couple getting the celebration that they wanted!
Mary
October 21, 2011
Oh how I know how you feel! Though I was able to drop all my concerns the morning of and just thoroughly enjoy myself and mike, the planning and the invite list….to this day, i have no words. And it’s already been four years! haha. My husband and I wanted to have an intimate wedding with family and friends but with our huge families that was already 250 people. By tradition and culture, parents are supposed to be able to invite all their friends/colleagues **insert image of My Big Fat Greek Wedding but it was a Korean wedding; a thousand times worse**. We had 900 guests!! We fed them all! The picture of the packed church is amazing but I wish I knew half the people there. So do over? Definitely.
rae
October 21, 2011
my husband and i got married at city hall with just our parents and two close friends. afterwards, we went out for brunch. on our first anniversary, we had a big celebration at a neighborhood venue. it was so much fun! i loved the way it all worked out for us. i would not trade a second of it for a big white wedding…
Jackie
October 21, 2011
I loved my wedding day (despite the stress and emotions leading up to it, I promised to let it all go that day!) But I love entertaining, weddings, and pretty dresses so I’ve always wanted to do a big anniversary party somewhere down the road. Thanks for highlighting this couple’s story. It’s quite lovely!
Kathleen
October 21, 2011
This next year I’ll get the day of my dreams, twenty years later! Like you, I got the guy but not the wedding day I dreamed of. I’m so glad to hear others feel the same way!
Katie
October 21, 2011
That is brilliant! I didn’t care for my wedding either. And who says you have to wait for a big anniversary to celebrate. I think every year is a milestone. I’m definitely going to do this.
Kelly M.
October 21, 2011
I feel the same way. When we got married 7 years ago, there weren’t as many fabulous resources as their are today. You had The Knot online and some generic wedding magazines. We did everything ourselves which I do appreciate (I made the dress, table linens, centerpieces, invites etc) but I have so many more ideas now. I think we will wait till our 10th anniversary and throw some sort of wedding re-do party. Why not. I think it would be fun.
Lauren
October 21, 2011
What a fabulous idea! I think that fancy anniversary parties are a great idea- there’s not much better to celebrate than another successful year of marriage!
AllisonJ
October 21, 2011
My wedding day was the very best day of my life…I loved every single minute. But I was 27 and had planned most of it myself.
But an anniversary party…??? Um…yes, please!
Jessica
October 21, 2011
It’s my 10th anniversary next year. I live on a park and a Summer croquet garden party would be amazing!!
Natalie
October 21, 2011
HA! I just died. I am looking forward to a small intimate anniversary party! I’ve been trying to wrap up my post wedding blog post and all I can think of is obnoxious titles like “Happiest Day of My Life?” I love that I married my husband and for the most part everything was amazing, but dang… it’s a lot of pressure in too many ways.
Molly @thewaffler.com
October 21, 2011
My parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary next fall. They didn’t want a huge party, but my sister and I are (secretly) putting together a big coffee table style book with pictures of them throughout their life together. We have emailed all of their friends asking for a memory or anecdote to include in the book. We hope they’ll like it!
Cecilia
October 21, 2011
ahahahahah Now I know whoy you organize parties! cause you own wedding was a mess!
It s so admirable to be so sincere!
Darcy
October 21, 2011
I too did not love my wedding day. My husband, yes, but not my reception, or my flowers, or even my dress. I got married very young so our budget was ridiculously tight and my tastes were waaaaaay different than they are today. I have dreamed of a do-over for the last 12 years. I’m so glad to see that I’m not the only one! We’ve already had our 10th, so maybe on our 15th anniversary? And can I just completely carbon copy this party pictured above? I love everything about it!!! I’ve even been dreaming of playing croquet at my do-over for some time now. Thank you for sharing this with us. You have inspired me to replan ‘the happiest day of my life.’
Jessica @ The Desert Abode
October 21, 2011
What a beautiful way to celebrate an anniversary! We had a very small wedding in Hawaii (which we loved!), but this would be a perfect way to celebrate a milestone anniversary. We’re past the five mark, so maybe number 10?
Casey
October 21, 2011
I don’t think I could ever throw such a distinguished party – I don’t know anyone with a fancy mustache!
Susan
October 21, 2011
Girl, I hear you! Even in my pictures, I look nervous… it just felt so chaotic and I worried about everyone except for me and my husband. Looking back, we would have done things much differently. But-it’s over! And I think an anniversary party would be way more fun! Thanks for posting this!
sami
October 21, 2011
i talked with someone that referred to her wedding as a “weird day” and i was like, i don’t get it! but maybe it is common to like your marriage more than your wedding 🙂 i love the idea of celebrating again!!!
xo
sami
ps. i am giving away a very pretty dress on my blog!
http://glimpseofglamour.blogspot.com/2011/10/shabby-apple-giveaway.html
Kacie
October 21, 2011
I LOVED my wedding and wouldn’t have changed a thing about it but I understand how the stress can override the fun. I’ve seen it with many of my girlfriends. Our wedding was a lot like these photos, small, intimate and all about the friends (and food).
Kacie
http://www.acollectionofpassions.com/
Emily
October 21, 2011
Love this idea! I loved my groom (still do!), the flowers, and my dress. The rest was okay, except for the bridesmaid dresses, which I hated.
sarah
October 21, 2011
interesting. i am a wedding coordinator….and i do everything in my power (with a notebook 6-8 months before the wedding with everything in it the bride could ever need to think of) to make sure the day is just as she wants it. most moms come to plan with the brides, and i’m very careful to make sure the girls have their day as they like it and not mom.
so far, my brides have all been so pleased with their day.
i also loved my own day….destination wedding to isle of palms–charleston, sc.
nothing can beat the beach for a dreamy romantic day.
it was low stress, and a fun party and day of barefoot on the beach!
Rach
October 21, 2011
Wow, I can not believe how much I want to do this. I would do EVERYTHING different. Thanks for sharing this beautiful idea!
Sarah @http://agirlintransit.blogspot.com/
October 21, 2011
Yes, that cake… oh that cake. I need that cake. I love the guy with the curly mustache…. simple awesome.
– Sarah
http://agirlintransit.blogspot.com
MomVee
October 21, 2011
You could have a Seven Year Itch party!
Cher
October 21, 2011
I HATED my wedding day too! I would do everything different if I had the resources I have now. But I think when we hit 5 years, I’m going to plan something special like this! I wish more party planning websites shared anniversary party ideas. I feel that celebration is really over looked. Anniversaries for couples really ought to have more attention, especially with so many marriages ending nowadays. For those of us that are really trying to maintain a strong marriage, I think celebrating anniversaries are essential. I do a little get together for all of my friends anniversaries….even if it’s just buying a cake with their name on it. It makes them feel special!
Chanel
October 21, 2011
This is amazing! Would even suffice AS a wedding!! You shouldn’t feel bad and should definitely have a little celebratory redo for your 7th!
http://bywayofney.blogspot.com
Jenni
October 21, 2011
I’m so glad I’m not alone! Even after three years, I keep thinking of the things I would do differently, planning, more invites, the whole lot. So unorganized, and we were young and on a tight budget. At the time, eloping/a small desination wedding sounded like a great idea, but now I am really grateful because I was able to get in some really great family photos that we wouldn’t have been able to get otherwise. Funny, when I spoke to my dear friends, they said that they had a ton of fun at the wedding, and my husband said it was the best day of his life! I guess it must have gone fine, even though I could only see what went wrong (the guests went unawares). I think that must happen often. I’ve been dreaming of an anniversary party like this, ever since we got married. For our third anniversary (a few days ago) we went and took anniversary pictures. They were similar to engagement pictures, but we couldn’t afford to take those before we got hitched 🙂
laura
October 21, 2011
thank you for posting this. not only does the party look beautiful, but it’s such a great idea. it makes me feel like less of a brat for hating my wedding day. i was SOO happy to marry my lovely db, but it rained, was really cold (mid june!!!) and overall was not what i’d said i wanted at all. everyone had a great time and someday when we have a redo, WE’LL have a great time 🙂
Brandy
October 21, 2011
Love, love, love this idea! I just got married and it is a stressful day and there is so much pressure. We had a wonderful wedding, but I would love to re-visit a celebration dinner for the milestone anniversaries! Plus i really want to do another photo shoot, our wedding day photos could have been more creative – honestly (not that they are great, they could have been even better). Unfortunately when you are hosting a big party you kind of want to be with your guests – not working out shots with your photographer.
Great post!
Purple Deer
October 21, 2011
I am so glad I’m not alone. We weren’t planning for getting married for at least a year after our engagement. And 3 months later we got a little bundle surprise on the way. Then our non-practicing Catholic mothers started growing frantic. So we had a quick one in one of their backyards. I was to busy being sickly/ prego to feel the butterflies…AND I COULDN’T DRINK!
Kasey
October 21, 2011
I loved my wedding day, but I absolutely hated planning my wedding. All of the stress made me lose a lot of weight, fight a lot with parents (whom I love!), and want to just skip the day and go straight to my honeymoon. If I had to do it over again? I’d hire a wedding planner!
Koru Kate {Koru Wedding}
October 21, 2011
I loved my wedding day from start to finish but I would adore some fun anniversary parties on the milestones like 5, 10, 20, etc.
Jenn
October 21, 2011
My wedding day was rushed, disorganized, and exhausting! My family didn’t take my then-fiancee and I seriously about getting married (22 is SO young they said) so things didn’t come together until the week of. It sounds awful, but I feel embarrassed when someone wants to see our wedding album, which is cheesy to the max. On the other hand, getting married today has the potential to be triply stressful. There is such a wealth of creativity and inspiration out there, it would be difficult for me to distill all those ideas down to one day. But I do love the idea of a formal anniversary dinner.
Lauren at TwIn Style
October 21, 2011
My wedding day was actually really wonderful, although we had some major hiccups that were all caused by the fact that our catering manager decided to go on vacation that weekend without ever telling us. I planned the heck out of my wedding to make sure that everything was in place, yet things still went wrong! I feel like a big dork for saying it, but the day really was the best of my life. To answer your question, I’m not sure I’d have a formal anniversary party, mostly because we like to celebrate ours with just the two of us.
ali
October 21, 2011
I totally agree! My wedding day was a crazy emotional day, both good and bad … and the folks that were my wedding planners were great, but they weren’t able to take all the weight of planning off of me. So I have photos of me talking on my cell phone (taking care of last minute details) while putting on my wedding dress! Granted, it’s slightly funny now that I look back at them, they are beautiful black and white photographs with this hilarious image of a harried bride! We are coming up on 6 years in about 8 days, and we’re planning a small getaway this year (somewhere just outside the Bay Area), but I’ve always wanted to do a vow renewal and dinner with no pressure and close friends all around. I love this fete! 🙂
My Traveling Troop
October 21, 2011
Wow! The party looks as gorgeous as a wedding reception!
Cheers,
Kristina
Kate @ Stripes and Polka Dots
October 22, 2011
This is such a lovely idea! Why not continue to celebrate your love with beautiful parties after you are married? I’ll have to keep this in mind for a special anniversary a few years down the road.
Hannah B.
October 22, 2011
You are definitely not alone in wanting a do-over, and I’m loving this beautiful party! My favorite idea is definitely the ice cream in champagne flutes… How fun!
Francophile
October 22, 2011
I too hate my wedding day. Never plan your own wedding and expect to be relaxed and in the moment. If I had it to do again I would have splurged on a wedding planner. The baker got the cake wrong, the florist got the bouquets wrong, and the caterer served and expensive gift from a guest as the toasting champagne instead of the one I had chilling. As a result I didn’t enjoy my honeymoon either because I was still stressed out. Also, never choose your teenage sister as your maid of honor. She was of no help. I would do it over again for sure. Perhaps for our 20th.