When Laura + Mark started planning their wedding, they knew there would be no place that would be as meaningful or as beautiful as Mark’s parent’s home in Camas, Washington. His parents built the home together upon retiring, and have truly poured their hearts and souls into the place. The sloping hills, the masterfully crafted gardens (done by M’s Mom!), and the spectacular views of Mount Hood practically made it a photographer’s playground for our west coast photog, Michael. He did an amazing job of artfully highlighting the beauty of the property, while most importantly, capturing the heart and soul of this sweet couple and their entire family. L + M met online, and certainly not without a little luck! Best described in Laura’s own words: “It’s easy to decide on the online sites that you only want to look for someone who’s a certain height, with a certain level of education, who does or doesn’t have kids and then filter out all the rest; so when Mark sent me an email – I never would have found him on my own due to the aforementioned search filters and he’s the best risk I ever took. It goes to show I didn’t know what was best for me. 🙂 We had a lot of big relationship talks early on because Mark has a young child who lives with him pretty much full time. But we found out very early that we share a lot of values and though we have quite different hobbies, we are both of adventurous spirit and open to exploring each others interests. I could go on- I feel really lucky to have found such a wonderful man who wants to spend the rest of his life with me.”
Five things we’re absolutely loving about L + M’s wedding?
1. Clearly, we LOVE the venue! 🙂
2. We also love all of the cultural traditions they decided to incorporate into their big day. Laura has a Jewish cultural background, so they chose to get married under a Chuppah with her Grandfather’s prayer shawl draped over it (adore that), sign the Ketubah, and of course – dance the Hora!
3. L + M are big nature lovers and have house plants and succulents all throughout their home, so it only made sense to incorporate that into their big day as well! We love all of the little DIY natural accents they use throughout the decor – in our opinion, succulents are always a good idea. Also, they MADE all of those beautiful centerpieces themselves!!
4. How cute are test tubes filled with tea as party favors? Love.
5. All the couples & bridal party shots taken after the ceremony around the estate are completely amazing. Michael nailed it!
Thank you so much for asking us to be a part of your big day, L + M! We hope you love your sneak peek, and we can’t wait to share the rest with you very soon!
Ceremony & Reception Venue:: Maan and Dixie Jawad’s home (Groom’s Parents); Florist:: Stacey’s Flowers; Cake Vendor:: Le Cookie Monkey; Caterer:: Vibrant Table; Reception Entertainment:: Event Team Entertainment; Officiant:: Your Personal Ceremony, Joanie Levine; Dress Designer:: Chrissy Wai-Ching; Hair Stylist & Makeup Artist:: Portland Hair and Makeup, Bri Ellis; Invitations/Program Vendor:: Save the dates, invitation and website banner design – “Love vs. Design”; Wedding Planner:: Luxe Event Productions; Handmade Ketubah:: Tsilli Pines