Playful Georgian Bay Wedding at Bear Estate in Collingwood

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Couple:

Jeff & Alice

Location:

Bear Estate, Collingwood

From the Photographer:

It was clear from the very start that Alice and Jeff were putting together the most anticipated event of the year. They had a clear vision of an event that kept their family and friends at the forefront and ensured that everyone had a good time. Nothing felt overly formal, or stiff throughout the day. Everywhere you turned someone was belly laughing from the beginning of the day to the moment we left and that dance floor was epic! It was a very memorable day with lots of little surprises: from the icing of the groom at the start of the reception, to the kids turning the ceremony site into an interesting chair art installation, to Jeff’s surprise love song to Alice, it was definitely one for the books!

Playful September Georgian Bay wedding at Bear Estates

From the Couple:

How did you choose your venue?: We liked the view at Bear Estate and being able to do the ceremony, dinner and reception all in one place, with accommodations on site.

What was the most important thing for you for your wedding day?: Our main focus was that we wanted our guests to have a great time. We planned the day mostly, with them in mind. Had a short ceremony and longer cocktail "hour" so that everyone could socialize. Live music always makes an event more memorable, so we got a jazz trio for the cocktail hour and a 9-piece band for the reception. We wanted good food, good drinks and good music. It's hard to get everyone together for an event, so we focused on being present for as much of the day as possible, to be able to spend time with our guests. We signed our marriage license at the rehearsal the day before and only really stepped away for about an hour to take so photos on the day of. We did all of our family, wedding party and couple pictures prior to the ceremony, which gave us more time with our guests.

Please describe any unique details from your day and why they were special to you: We kept everything on time...somehow. Everyone kept telling us how relaxing the day was. The band, Stereoflavour, was fantastic and kept everyone moving the entire night. Arguably, we kept it simple. We focused on what mattered to us, which was that our guests had the best time.

Jeff performed a love song to Alice...on the drums.

What was the atmosphere you were trying to create?: We wanted a relaxed and fun atmosphere focused on celebration and our guests.

What area of your wedding did you splurge on? (what was your top priority): We wanted good food, good drinks and good music, so we spent most of our time and money to ensure that we would have these on our wedding day.

What area of your wedding did you save on?: We made the party favours ourselves, from a birch tree that was taken down from Alice's parent's yard. The same tree was used to make part of the centre pieces.

What wedding advice would you give to someone planning their wedding now?: Think about what is most important to you up front, before getting into the weeds. It's easy to get side tracked or off course from what you really want, so understanding what's important will keep you focused.