When your wedding anniversary only comes once every four years, you know it’s because you got married on Leap Day! That was the case for fun and funky couple Alayna + Jered. These two antique-lovin’, DIY do-ers wanted to infuse their P.A.R.C. wedding day with color, confetti, and cupcakes! A also shared her tips for how they made their dream wedding work within a smaller space. Hint: It includes maximizing the vertical space of the room! A shares:
My inspiration for the day was a colorful, vintage, intimate Leap Day disco with lots of personal touches. Our very first date was on Leap Day four years earlier, so it was only fitting to tie the knot on the same date. I hand-tied 18 strings of “ceiling fringe as the focal point for both the ceremony and the reception (complete with a disco ball in the center). The early 1900s building we used belongs to a friend, and he allowed us to paint all the walls white and gave us full creative freedom to transform the space.
Lucky for us, Cari Hughes Photography was there to capture this explosion of color and crazy fun!!
Vintage Details
A + J love to go thrifting through their local antique stores so they were determined to fill their day with the flavor of all things unique, whimsical and nostalgic. Even their rings are from antique stores! A’s sparkler is from Yesterday’s Treasure while J’s wedding band is from Rare Bird Antiques.
Sparkling Bridals
A was a sparkling goddess on wedding day! We’re loving the celestial headpiece she scored from NSLS! (right from Amazon!)
To match the funkiness of her rad, sequin ASOS wedding dress, A’s ladies wore brightly colored and vibrant attire. This is mismatched bridesmaids dresses done right!!
Meanwhile, J and the boys went classic black in striking attire from The Black Tux.
POWER COUPLE!!
Leap Day Wedding Ceremony
DIY wedding GOALS right here! Isn’t this hanging installation of sparkling fringe incredible?? Loving this like we are? Check out these other creative hanging installations for your wedding!
Love the cute and colorful touches like these chair ribbons!
Our photo-backdrop wall had a gallery of floral paintings from our home, complete with a hand-lettered FOR EVER painting I did and added last minute. We pulled so much from our home to add touches of us. We love to antique together, so we wanted a whimsical, fun, nostalgic feel throughout.
This is where disco dreams come true!
As soon as the tables were gone from the space and the sun was setting, we swapped out all the light bulbs with pink bulbs, and switched on our disco dance lights, flashing the sparkling ceiling with a rotating rainbow glow. That’s when the party really came to life! It was the greatest feeling in the world to be in a dream disco surrounded by our closest friends and family. Both of my grandmothers, I found out later, were taking shots behind the bar with Jered’s friends! And my 2-year-old niece stole the show, dancing harder, longer and freer than anyone. It was the cutest. The playlist was disco centric, with lots of 80s and 90s hits throughout, so fun! It was truly surreal and special beyond measure.
The Newlyweds!
A + J used biodegradable confetti and we think it’s such a fun look! You can shop some for yourself, right here on Etsy!
-Do what you want, not what’s expected. Most people who asked me what my wedding would be like were totally confused and/or skeptical of my vision. That’s ok! Everyone ended up being blown away and appreciated seeing our personalities represented all around the room.
-Think outside the box! You can create almost anything you dream up.
-Ask for help! Enlist your friends and family to complete tasks, you shouldn’t have to do it all alone.
-Roll with it. If something isn’t panning out, try your best, and if it just isn’t going to happen, let that shit go. There’s always an alternative.
-Oh, and definitely eat dinner. Take the few minutes to sit and eat so you don’t have to emergency eat in the middle of dancing your heart out.
DIY Reception Decor
One of the most creative details of A + J’s leap day wedding is how they used their small space to the max! Here’s what A had to share about it:
With a small, narrow building I knew I needed a solution to utilize as much space as possible without crowding it, so we built upwards. The “pop up” walls we created with plywood and 2x4s and paint we already had for home and business projects. Instead of a dessert table that would be a floor-space vampire, we did a wall of cupcakes. Our snack wall had endless popcorn and vintage, framed carnival popcorn bags. Our favorite snack!
Plus, they flipped the space with the help of family and friends!
We had a small guest list of around 60 people, so we wanted a convertible setup to allow for a short-and-sweet ceremony, tables pulled in after for a casual vegan taco bar dinner, then we pulled the tables back out and lined the walls with the chairs to create the dance floor. My amazing family smoothly transitioned all three setups for us while we were busy chatting, cheering, and getting our photos taken.
Processional: “Whole Wide World” by Biker Daughter, a version of my favorite song from the movie Stranger Than Fiction
Recessional: No Recessional
First Dance: First Dance: “From Here to the Moon and Back” by Dolly Parton
A even DIY’ed her leather bridal jacket with patches from Daily Disco. Check out the our DIY leather jacket how-to and create your own!
Congratulations Alayna + Jered! Your Leap Day wedding is perfect inspiration for couples looking to incorporate whimsical DIY details and lots of fun color into their wedding day! We hope married life is just as colorful and creative for you guys!
photography: Cari Hughes Photography // venue name: P.A.R.C, Michigan City, Indiana, USA // wedding dress: ASOS // hairpiece: NSLS // bride’s ring: Yesterday’s Treasure // groom attire: The Black Tux // groom’s ring: Rare Bird Antiques // catering: Mucho Mas // leather jacket patches: Daily Disco