Cofield "Surprise" Wedding on 11/23/15 at Mama Stortini's in Puyallup, Wa
Music licensed from -
The Music Bed - themusicbed.com
This was one of the most unique weddings I have had the opportunity to help out with yet! When Mallory shared her idea with me almost 2 months ago, I knew it would be a blast. She and her soon to be husband Mike wanted to throw an "engagement dinner" with all of their family and friends. The pretense would be that they planned on announcing to everyone key elements of their wedding day (i.e. bridal party, officiant, date, etc.) Unbeknownst to everyone but a few key people, they planned on actually getting married, thus surprising everyone in the process!
The video above does a better job of describing the night than I ever will here in writing, so I encourage you to click the link and experience their story. I will share a few key details of the night however.
- It really was a surprise! I would say except for myself, the photographer (Jessica of Seven of Hearts photography), maybe 3 or 4 other people who helped set everything up, no body else knew what was going on.
- It really was a special moment. When Mike and Angela (their officiant) finally made the big reveal, there was a special feeling in the room, a very emotional feeling, that I was honored to be a part of.
- Her mom really didn't know. I actually found myself speaking to her earlier in the night. I assumed she was a family friend or relative (not the mother of the bride!) She came up to me asking about why a video person would be present at an engagement party. "Oh you know, in case anybody gives any toasts. I'm here to capture people mingling, that sort of thing." (I just blurted something out in small talk.) Believe me, if I had any idea that I was actually lying to the mother of the bride, I would have thought much harder about my cover story and not just blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
- I wouldn't recommend this for everyone. There are certainly pros and cons to every type of wedding ceremony and this one was no different. Everybody there had a great time, enjoyed the surprise, and overall it made for a shorter wedding day. With a shorter wedding day you lose a little bit of time to mingle with wedding guests which could be considered a slight disadvantage.
- Overall I really did think it was a complete success. Mike and Mallory played their parts perfectly, they certainly got the reaction they were looking for and they are headed off to enjoy a happy married life together!
Photographer - Seven of Hearts Photography
Venue - Mama Stortini's