The Wedding Story of Emily and Blake Murray

Photos By430 Studios

Written By

Carri Fras

Date

January 16, 2019

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After meeting while working for the same brewing company, Emily and Blake quickly became friends and started dating about a year later. Emily fondly remembers their proposal saying, “We took our dogs for a late night beach walk and he popped the question—just us and ours dogs as our witness. It was midnight-ish and pitch dark, but he still cutely asked, ‘Do you like the ring?’ although I couldn't see.”

For this sweet couple, they fell in love instantly with their venue. “There was only one Saturday still available for the upcoming year, so we went for it and the rest fell into place from there,” says Emily. The result was a fun, casual, eclectic and vintage vision. How did the pair achieve this? They followed the venue’s style which also naturally lined up with both their lifestyle and home decor. Emily explains, “We were able to pull some decor from our house and then also go to D.I.Y. town.”

Just some of this wedding’s special touches included handmade table decor, a signature drink and many D.I.Y. projects to be proud of. Emily says, “My husband is part owner of a small brewery called Burn Em in Michigan City, Indiana, and we got to brew a special wedding day beer to serve our guests. We named it ‘For Rich or Short Pour.’” Emily adds, “We spray painted 175 dinosaurs for our placeholders, my mom handwrote the placeholders, made all of our signs, thrifted all the vases for our tables (as well as filled them with our own floral arrangements) and made the bridesmaids' bouquets and the groomsmen’s boutonnieres. My aunt made our programs which looked like a newspaper. My grandma made our cake (a silver cake like the one she and my grandpa had at their wedding), and another one of my aunts decorated it for us. My brother made a donut wall.”

What We Love

“So, my grandma actually made my dress!” says the proud bride. “I repeat—made it from start to finish with her own hands!...I had gone and tried some dresses on a few different times and never found ‘the one’ so she combined the different elements of various dresses into the perfect dress for me. Looking back on the day, I can't imagine myself wearing anything other than the dress she crafted for me and put her heart and soul into making just right for me and the occasion.”

Advice From the Bride

Emily says, “Don't sweat it, because none of it really matters in the end! Your marriage and future is what matter and that day is just the beginning. All of the stuff you worry about people don't even notice and the day goes by so quickly. Go with your gut and don't overanalyze your decisions.”