oh boy. oh boy. oh boy… that’s the only way i know how to start this post. every now and then i meet a couple that inspires me so much with their style & their love. erika & malcolm are those type of people. malcolm proposed to erika on new year’s eve and erika emailed me on january second—without a wedding date or a wedding venue and before she had even told all of her friends. forty-eight hour turn-around. i like it. ;) erika was pretty excited to say the least. being self-proclaimed “urban cowboys” erika & malcolm knew exactly where they wanted to have their wedding: on the farm. we’re not talking just any farm–but the very farm on which erika & malcolm met six summers ago. bird’s eye cove farm, a sprawling three-hundred acre property on vancouver island, is owned by erika’s close family friends and also erika’s maid of honour, sara. erika spent her summers growing up visiting sara at the farm. this place is absolutely incredible. sara’s family has a huge barn at the back of the property in which they host dances annually.

it had been a few summers since erika had been to the farm but she returned to celebrate sara’s college graduation. malcolm, a long-time friend of sara, walks into the barn and erika felt something. yep. she wanted to get to know this man and that she did! during the speeches at the reception, sarah joked that malcolm stayed on the farm every minute for the rest of the weekend that erika was around, right up until she was dropped off at the airport. she knew he was smitten. at this point in time, erika lived in manitoba and malcolm on vancouver island. quite a distance apart. they kept in touch and it wasn’t until erika moved to vancouver island a whole year later that they began dating. i was SO excited to be there for their day and i wasn’t disappointed. the love these two share for each other and for their saviour Jesus is so beautiful. i absolutely love it. (if you missed their engagement session a few months ago, check it out here. favourite.)

i have much too much (that makes sense, right?) to blog; so you will be getting this wedding in two parts over the next week. i simply couldn’t get over all of the rustic details. so amazing as you’ll see a taste of in the photos below! erika & malcolm chose to do a “first look” around noon on the wedding day and it was wonderful, as always. erika was smiling and giggling halfway through the portrait time as she looked at her soon-to-be-husband malcolm, “the first look is the only way to do a wedding day. i’m so happy i’m WITH you right now! on our wedding day! this is perfect.” i had to agree. we literally had hours to shoot all around the gorgeous property and i was completely taken with the beauty of the place.

florals: polka dot door
hairpiece: dovetree on etsy
bridesmaids dresses: j.crew
graphic design: emily kelly of unsceneic
caterer: just jakes
groomsmen’s suits: black & lee

stay tuned for part two… and a slideshow when part two comes!