Sarah and Thorsten’s wedding story is so charming. Because they lived abroad, they planned two celebrations, one in Germany and one in the United States. Their American wedding, photographed by Ciara Richardson, is a stunning combination of their cultures and style, and we love the result. This charming garden party style wedding is timeless, and we hope serves as inspiration for any bride looking for a casual, fun, intimate, yet elegant celebration with friends and family.
Here’s a little more from Sarah: As Thorsten and I come from different continents, we had the joy (and intensity) of planning two wedding celebrations- the wedding in Germany and a garden party shortly afterward in Utah. We met while I was in Stuttgart, Germany doing an summer internship during my master’s studies in architecture. Our meeting was clearly fated, and I knew I would return to Germany after finishing my last year of school. We had many wonderful years of exploring Europe together before we were engaged, and we decided to hold the ceremony in Germany as well. Our wedding took place in the Germany countryside where I was fortunate enough to have my closest friends and family fly from the United States to share the day with us. We celebrated again shortly after the wedding in my parents’ garden, where my larger extended family and friends were able to attend. In planning both wedding celebrations, we combined American and German traditions, foods, and languages. For our Utah celebration, we brought the casual elegance of a European sidewalk cafe into the Utah garden setting. Although planning the event from Europe was challenging, I was fortunate enough to have an old family friend (the amazing Vicki from Ella Bella Floral) as a coordinator and stylist, and through many late-night Skype calls and a shared Pinterest board the event came out exactly as I envisioned. We served Mediterranean- and German-style foods (including freshly grilled sausage and apfelstrudel!), to create an atmosphere where guests could mix and mingle and enjoy our fabulous band below the evening skies. After an early weather scare at the beginning of the party, the rainclouds cleared away and we had a perfect evening.
