Abby and Macy’s Garden Wedding Blended Tradition and Modern Charm

There’s something truly special about a wedding that blends the old with the new, where time-honored traditions meet fresh, personalized touches. That’s one of our favorite jobs as Montana wedding planners: Helping couples discern which traditions feel authentic to them and how to put their own special twist on them. Abby and Macy’s garden wedding was the perfect example of this, effortlessly combining classic wedding traditions with their own contemporary flair!

Their unique personalities shone through in their garden wedding design, from the blush and white floral to their two meaningful ceremonies. Their wedding venue also provided the perfect setting with an organic, natural view of the Montana mountains that felt both romantic and sophisticated. As we incorporated traditional elements like the father/daughter dance and a bride and groom’s cake, we also added fun twists on them to make them truly Abby and Macy’s. The result? A garden wedding day filled with emotional moments, a stunning aesthetic, and a beautiful blend of classic and new.

From the ceremony to the reception, Abby and Macy’s wedding was an example of how traditions can evolve, how personal style can shine through, and how every couple can create a wedding that truly reflects who they are. Let’s walk through some of the highlights from their garden wedding day!

The Church Wedding Day:

It was important to Abby and Macy to have a traditional church wedding ceremony, but they also wanted to share contemporary nuptials as well. While we considered having the best of both worlds by having a more religious ceremony at the venue, we ultimately decided it was their wedding, so why not have two ceremonies? One of our favorite mottos is to have your wedding, your way, so we started out Abby and Macy’s garden wedding weekend with their first ceremony at St Ignatius Mission Parish!

Whoever said you can’t have your cake and eat it too never met us because having two ceremonies meant Abby got to have two dresses, two walks down the aisle, two first married kisses, and two bridal moments! She wore a lovely white midi dress with trailing bows tied at her shoulders that delicately reflected the bows on her chiffon shoes. She held an organic bridal bouquet filled with fluffy ivory blooms as her father escorted her down the aisle to marry Macy for the first time!

This worked for Abby and Macy because they got to share this experience with their closest family while still having a ceremony at the venue the next day with all their guests. It made this church ceremony that much more sacred.

After they exchanged vows, they celebrated at their “rehearsal” dinner. This first day was beautifully intimate, giving the newlyweds the opportunity to honor their family and religion in a special way. This also set the scene perfectly for their garden wedding the next day…

Garden Wedding at Snowline Acres:

Abby and Macy selected Snowline Acres for their accommodations and wedding venue. They have a lake house and guest house on property, which was a convenient place for them to get ready for their garden wedding day with friends.

As they relaxed and got dolled up, Katie and the vendor team were hard at work preparing every detail for this garden wedding! The florists installed a striking 12 foot circular floral wreath as the ceremony backdrop with matching ground florals lining the aisle. They utilized organic greenery along with full blooms, creating a lush, garden feel even though we were indoors! The wreath perfectly highlighted the natural backdrop just beyond the venue windows and it even appeared to float in the air, creating an even more ethereal aesthetic.

We would use the same event space for both the garden wedding ceremony and reception, so we set the ceremony chairs in the center of the room, but then had the reception farm tables framing the area. Everything was set to go by the time the guests arrived, so that when the ceremony was over and everyone broke for cocktail hour, we would just need to move the ceremony chairs and put the reception tables in place.

It takes a village to put on a wedding, but especially on with a room flip like this!

First Look & Second Wedding Ceremony:

If Macy thought Abby looked good on their church wedding day, he was in for even more of a treat on their garden wedding day! On this day, Abby wore a gorgeous cream wedding gown with off the shoulder sleeves and a flowing skirt and train – Perfect for twirling!

To reveal this bridal look to Macy, the two had their first look in the venue’s loft area. This space overlooked the ceremony/reception and had shimmering market lighting in the background. Macy’s reaction didn’t disappoint either, as his smile lit up the room even further!

When it was time for their second wedding ceremony of the weekend, Katie lined up the processional and cued the music. The song “Biblical” by Calum Scott rang through the air and set the tone for the proceedings.

One twist on tradition that we incorporated during this part of the wedding was Abby and Macy’s flower girl. Instead of having a child toss petals as tradition, they chose to have one of their friends do the honor!

They also had one of the bridesmaids walk down the aisle with not only her bouquet, but a large picture of one of their friends who wasn’t able to be there.

This garden wedding ceremony was special for these modern twists, but also because everyone got to witness Abby and Macy’s love and commitment to each other. The floral wreath backdrop was beautiful, but the joy on the couple’s faces was even more stunning as they shared their second first married kiss!

Garden Wedding Inspired Reception:

For Abby and Macy’s reception design, we drew inspiration from Montana meadows and gardens! Their garden wedding color palette included hues of blush pink, whites, gold and sage green. We infused these shades into their sweetheart table, which had a blush linen and napkins, bud vases with fresh floral, and gold mercury votives. Then, we set this in front of the floral wreath to serve as a newlywed backdrop. We also repurposed the ground florals from the ceremony to be in front of their table, creating their own personal meadow!

For the guest tables, we created 3 long king’s tables that framed the dance floor. White gauze runners ran down the center of each table. We placed organic greenery wreaths on top of these along with gold glass taper candle holders, gold votives and bud vases. Each place setting got a vintage white charger with a blush pink napkin in a knot fold. This elegant tablescape is the perfect example of how to take a classic color palette and make it both modern and timeless!

During cocktail hour, guests enjoyed appetizers like bison meatballs and trout crostini (both homages to Montana!).  Meanwhile, the vendor team flipped the indoor space from ceremony to reception! We repurposed the ceremony chairs, ensured the reception tables were in the right spots, cleaned the petals from the ceremony, and set the bridesmaids’ bouquets throughout the room, and of course, lit every candle in the space!

The final product was a dreamy garden-like atmosphere, made more perfect by the amber glow from the overhead market lights.

How to Personalize Your Wedding Reception:

If you’re looking for ways to personalize your wedding reception, take a few page out of Abby and Macy’s playbook! They found creative and meaningful ways to make their garden wedding their own. Let’s take a look at a few examples!

Reception Dances

They kicked off their reception with their first dance, which isn’t out of the ordinary, but they cleverly put a twist on this by asking all their guests and wedding party to surround the dance floor. We love this because it allowed Abby and Macy to feel extra loved during their first dance by feeling the physical presence of their loved ones near them.

Abby and her dad then put the most fun and unexpected twist on their father/daughter dance! Instead of a slow, heartfelt dance, they created one that felt more authentic to their dynamic. They started off with a traditional dance but then broke out into fun, upbeat choreography that of course elicited cheers from around the room!

Wedding Cakes

When we tell you that you don’t have to choose between two good things for your wedding, we mean it! Abby and Macy had two wedding cakes that day: a three-tiered bride’s cake and a separate groom’s cake. The bride’s cake had fresh floral cascading down the front in hues of dusty pink, blush, ivory and purple. If you looked closely though, you would see a little figurine of the couple’s dog, Barbara, taking a bite out of the cake, complete with her own party hat and balloons!

While this detail was subtle yet oh so fun, the groom’s cake featured Barbara completely! It was a recreation of her sweet face and the base featured the text, “I do too! Love, Barbara.” Abby and Macy simply lit up the first time they saw this!

These twists on their wedding cakes were both fun and personal, enabling them to honor Barbara even though she couldn’t be there in person.

Dance Floor Fun

Dance floor props are one of our favorite reception trends! When open dancing got underway, we broke out the glow sticks and cardboard cutouts of Barbara’s face! Everyone loved using these to take the party to the next level and the energy was through the roof!

Abby and Macy also put their personal stamp on their late night snack offerings. To refuel for more dancing, everyone munched on huckleberry Bear Claws: the couple’s favorite! Huckleberry is a flavor synonymous with Montana, so this was a special and delicious homage to our great state.

Abby and Macy’s garden wedding day was the most beautiful blend of tradition and modern charm! Every detail was thoughtful and meaningful, from the first time they said “I do” at the church to their bubble grand exit at the end of the garden wedding. It was an honor and privilege creating these special days for this special couple and we hope you found tons of inspiration from their wedding story!

A Word from Katie:

Abby & Macy, thank you times a million! You two were such a joy to work with and I feel so grateful to know you! Your wedding days were both so beautiful and bliss filled, and I wish the same for every day of your future together!

-Katie

Montana Wedding Vendor Team:

Wedding Planner: Big Day Celebrations

Church: St Ignatius Mission Parish

Venue & Accommodations: Snowline Acres

Photography: Amber Lynn Photography

Videography: On the Fly Films

Catering: The Kopper Kitchen

DJ: RMF Entertainment

Hair & Makeup: Melanie Hobus

Bartending:Treasure State Hospitality

Cake: Miss Patti Cakes

Floral: Blume Hill Studios

Rentals: Empress Tents & Events 

Linen: BBJ La Tavola

Let’s Plan Your Garden Wedding!

Big Day Celebrations offers full-service wedding planning, coordination & design services, and micro-wedding packages, so no matter how you envision your wedding, we will make it happen and have a whole lot of fun along the way!

Ready to get started? Drop me a note below and let’s do this!