I met Leslie through her amazing Pilates studio, Mindful Movement Centre. If you want to get your booty in shape, and feel strong calm and fabulous - I highly recommend.

Leslie & Rick had an intimate lunch with close family before their friends joined to witness them tie the knot. Leslie walked down the aisle with her dad and brother and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house! The afternoon stretched on into a beautiful summer evening of celebration and joy. The whole party was hosted by their good friend Simone, who not only is another kickass Pilates instructor, but also happens to be an exquisite chef!

To view some more intimate, and at-home weddings, check out Maureen & Lesley’s backyard ceremony, Bebhinn & Ian’s French bistro wedding, and Laura & Jeff’s Toronto Island elopement!

If you want intimate, natural photojournalism documenting your special day, schedule a chat with me by clicking here.

Sabina & Johann had a gorgeous sunny summer day for their wedding.

With a beautiful ceremony in Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church (hello, epic backdrop for a wedding party photo!)… then a dreamy photo session at Victoria College, on the University of Toronto Campus… and finally the party of the year in York Mills Gallery… This wedding was everything you could dream of and more.

I hope you enjoy this little sneak peek selection!

Photographers: Kate O’Connor and Melissa Sung

Thank you to the creative team:
Band/DJ: St. Royal Entertainment
Cake: Charismatic Cakes by Jen
Caterer: Southern Aroma
Ceremony Location: Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church
Decor: Limelight Affairs
Hair & Makeup: Parisa XO
Flowers: Audrey’s Flowers
Photography Location: Victoria College, University of Toronto
Reception Venue: York Mills Gallery
Videography: In the Moment Productions

So much sh*t bubbles to the surface during wedding planning. Whether you’re the chillest or the most uptight bride-to-be, wedding stress doesn’t discriminate!

Every bride basically wants the same things:

1. To look beautiful

2. To have an awesome time

3. To feel connected to the present moment & the people you love.

The Course is designed to teach IN DEPTH tools for brides, that take some practice to get good at, but here are three things every bride-to-be can start doing NOW:

1. Make a DECISION that you like the way you look. Is it that simple? Yes and no.

Learning to accept or even LOVE the way you look, whether it’s certain parts or the whole package, is a complex process involving your history, family, mental health and the world culture. (Hello $BILLION beauty industry!)

But ONE thing is guaranteed: All coaching, healing and self-improvement starts with a decision. Whether you can change or not, you will NOT feel happy with yourself until you choose to be. Start with this decision and commit to it.

2. Define AWESOME

Have an intentional conversation about what’s important - your top 3 items each. So much stress is caused by lack of clarity and communication around desires, fears, priorities, and expectations. You’re going to come up against tons of opinions about who, what, when, where, why and how much. Once you know what AWESOME means to you, you’ll have a map to guide your direction and choices together.

3. Practice

Think about it: when you learn a new skill - piano, golf, baking - you start off crappy and you practice. In the beginning your pastry dough is terrible. You can’t hit the ball to save your life. This is expected so you keep trying and get better.

Mental health is the same. What do you get anxious about? Who drives you nuts? STRESS is the reason brides say “It all went by in a blur! I don’t even REMEMBER my wedding day!”

Find areas where you need practice and start small. Receive compliments without deflecting. Order the first thing you see on the menu and decide you’ll love it. Say no to invitations, without giving an excuse. If you’ve never been good at receiving attention, setting boundaries, or letting go of control, at first you will suck. But it’ll get better.

Just have a little self-compassion and remember: every new skill takes PRACTICE.

If you or someone you know is getting married, The Course for Brides is the perfect gift! Sample The Course during our launch week special: 4 days of video talks with 25+ cutting-edge coaches & therapists, teaching on anxiety, body image, financial worry, conflict, difficult conversations, boundary setting, control issues… If you are dealing with it, the Course has a teacher for you!

When I photographed Amanda & Larry’s at-home engagement session, we decided the grounds of their condo were the perfect place to do their wedding photos too. This couple was ALL about baking things beautiful and easy. Hallelujah!!

They literally had the PERFECT weather for a beautiful autumn wedding. It was happy, colourful, and truly everyone you could ask for!

Amanda & Larry had lots of personal touches at their wedding, including skull shaped liquor bottles, custom made tea packages, and an incredible DIY backdrop for their ceremony at the Grand Luxe in Toronto… But one of the most special moments was surprising their guests with their first dance. You see, they had actually won a call-in radio prize and had the brilliant USS come play their first dance, and DJ for the night! Needless to say, a fantastic time was had by all.

The day was amazing and the night was even better.

Check out Larry & Amanda’s at-home engagement session here.
Check out Gacia & Alex’s wedding at Eagle’s Nest Golf Club - for more wedding bar hijinks - here.

Photographers: Kate O’Connor and Johnny Tang

Thank you to the creative team:
Hair: Bridal Hair Collective
Ceremony, Reception, Catering & Bar: The Grand Luxe Event Boutique
Music: Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker (USS)

This was the most fun wedding I’ve ever been to.

During wedding planning, many couples face the conundrum of feeling pressure to do things they don’t want. Some elements have no interest or meaning personally, and other elements may cause tension in the family or community. In my experience most couples muddle through and do it anyway, due to pressure from society and/or tradition. Tom and Elizabeth, on the other hand, decided to do things their own way. What’s more, they went about it in the most organized and laid back way.

Building a wedding that aligned with their values, interests, and personalities was important to Elizabeth and Tom.

I think their own words sum it up better than I ever could:

“We love biking, puppets, board games, beer, and burritos. Tom loves juggling and ukuleles. Elizabeth loves trying to make things herself, and sometimes goes overboard. The theme for this wedding is ‘all of the fun’ and is a mash-up of all the silly things we love. We're hoping to create a space that's casual and light hearted, but also meaningful and inclusive of the wide variety of guests that are coming.

Special things that we've built in that reflect these ideas include:

• Pedal powered sound system & bike themed clothing

• Non-traditional dress for the men (western shirts! including a bike themed one, a dinosaur themed one, and a steam punk themed one!)

• Planting a white magnolia tree as part of the ceremony

• Stations with bocce ball, juggling clubs, hula hoops, and board games

• A scavenger hunt, crafts, and a puppet show in lieu of speeches

• Making lots of the decor ourselves (a monster-themed card box, the bunting and bolo ties, the huge piles of jam as party favours, the place cards)

• Having our friends camp with us on our wedding night!

We've also been intentional in drawing on the services of independent, small, local businesses that share our values. The meal is all local/organic/vegetarian. The desserts are from friend who is a raw vegan chef. Small Pond [Arts] is an artist retreat centre run by dear, creative friends. The shirts and rings came from small independent places. The flowers are local. And most of the above (including the photography) are female-run enterprises.”

I must add, Elizabeth once blogged a DIY craft project for 52 weeks in a row (mentioned in my post of their wonderful engagement session), so of course they made all their own paper lanterns and flower arrangements. And Tom works in tech, so it’s no surprise that their homemade scavenger hunt included QR codes painted on rocks scattered about the farm grounds.

A few of my personal favourite moments included:

• Elizabeth’s bouquet included ivy grown from a clipping from her mother’s wedding bouquet

• The officiant’s mention of the zombie apocalypse

• The recessional: they had planned to walk through a field and the farmer who mowed the path through the field the day before made it a twisting, winding, turning aisle much to everyone’s delight!

• Tom’s surprise ukulele and song for Elizabeth

• Elizabeth’s surprise video messages to Tom from friends who couldn’t attend

• A bunch of guests’ surprise video messages throughout the night for Tom & Elizabeth to receive later

• Sitting around the campfire late into the night making s’mores and singing along to live guitar

• And the moment when they had to decide whether to turn off the bicycle power for the night, and decided they had faith that their guests would come through for them (they kept the bicycle-power going, and guests were practically lined up to take turns spinning!)

Honestly, I can’t say enough good things about this wedding. Just look at the freaking photos & enjoy!

This beautiful hand-built belt went perfectly with Elizabeth’s red vintage shoes and Tom’s chain-stitched shirt, both from Fort Lonesome.

Bentwood wedding rings by Stout Woodworks, and vintage family heirloom jewelry for the bride. Homemade DIY bolo ties for the groom and groomsmen (Tom’s BFF, officiant and bride’s dad).

Gotta love when the bride and groom choose a jumping shot for their formal family portrait.

Hay-stacks were laid with hand-packaged linen for guests to sit on.

There was an adult scavenger hunt and one for kids. In both cases, everyone was highly entertained during the cocktail hour!

Elizabeth and her friend Jill made homemade jam for the party favours, and she also sewed all her own wedding bunting.

After a highly entertaining puppet show (in lieu of speeches) the newlyweds thanked their guests, and had a few surprises for each other.

The next morning I went at sunrise to take some more photos of Small Pond Arts. The natural beauty of Price Edward County, combined with sunrise, and with my very full heart of happiness for these two special people…

This was a magical day. Elizabeth & Tom, I am so honoured to have been there documenting these moments and I wish you a lifetime of love, laughs, and bicycle-powered adventures!

Check out Tom & Elizabeth’s engagement session at Tommy Thompson Park (AKA Leslie Spit).
For another outdoorsy wedding, check out Rosemary & Alastair’s summer camp wedding.
For another indie weddings with a vegan twist, check out Bebhinn & Ian’s intimate wedding at Le Select Bistro.

Click here to read Elizabeth & Tom’s reviews of their wedding photography experience!

Thank you to the creative team:

Photography: Kate O’Connor and Jenny Blair

Bicycle Power: Toronto Bicycle Music Festival
Bride’s sash & groom’s shirt: Fort Lonesome
Cake: Allison Orr
Caterer: Urban Herb
Flowers: Flora Lora Flowers
Groomsmen attire: Rockmount Ranch Wear
Location: Small Pond Arts
Rings: Stout Woodworks