November Bride of the Month: Kristen Tardiff

Here at Art Paper Scissors, we absolutely love bringing a couples’ wedding theme to life. From save-the-dates to invitations to thank you cards and everything in between, Art Paper Scissors is a couple's one-stop-shop for all things wedding stationery.

Today we are chatting with our November bride of the month, Kristen. The new Mrs. Tardiff and her husband Joe tied the knot in October 2018 at Allaire State Park, with a celebration filled with dinner and dancing following at Doolan’s Shore Club. We truly loved working with this couple on their rustic and romantic wedding invitation design, featuring burgundy and blush watercolor florals.

Kristen is sharing all of the details of their wedding day - read on and enjoy these beautiful photos of the new Mr. and Mrs., captured by Expressive Image.

This photo captured by Art Paper Scissors

Art Paper Scissors: Tell us about your wedding day. The date, place and any extra fun details you would like to share.

Kristen: Our wedding date was October 26, 2018 in the chapel at the Historic Village at Allaire State Park in Farmingdale. It was a crisp, autumnal day with beautiful foliage surrounding the park. After a beautiful ceremony and wedding shoot; the bridal party and groomsmen boarded the E Street Shuttle, popped champagne, blasted music and took a short ride to Doolan’s Shore Club in Spring Lake to continue the celebrations!

Art Paper Scissors: How do you remember that special day? Any great memory that stands out?

Kristen: My fairytale. It sounds cliche, but this day was truly a fairytale. A day dreamt of as a little girl. It is hard to choose one memory that stood out most from the day. One of my favorite memories was walking down the aisle hand-in-hand with my new husband. I fondly recall our violinists playing as we shared a kiss, before leaving the chapel together. We walked around the chapel and back in through a side door so we could ring the old church bell together.

Another one of my favorite memories that I will cherish forever is the ride with my grandfather up to the chapel doors in a 1920’s Ford Model A car. We parked outside the chapel and waited for the last guests to find their seats before he walked me down the aisle.

Art Paper Scissors: What is your favorite part about being married?

Kristen: My favorite part of being married is the act of making memories with one another. Whether exploring new places on vacation, enjoying cheese board/wine nights, or simply going to the beach, it’s always better sharing these times with my husband!

Art Paper Scissors: Describe your wedding theme and feel in 3 words. Why did you choose this theme?

Kristen: Rustic, Romantic, Elegant

A rustic theme fit both of our personalities. It’s funny because we both grew up in shore towns by the ocean, which has been our lives for as long as we could remember. Since we chose the end of October, we thought a beach ceremony may be a tad too cold for us and our guests. Besides the fact it potentially could be too cold for a beach wedding, we thought we could still represent our love of the outdoors in general with something different. We wanted a rustic feel that also gave a romantic feel as well. With that being said, Allaire State Park was the perfect venue for us.

Art Paper Scissors: How did you decide on your burgundy, blush and watercolor floral wedding invitation design?

Kristen: We wanted our invitations to set the tone for our wedding. Joe and I (mostly me) wanted an invitation that would capture a rustic yet romantic elegance. To me the burgundy and blush with the watercolor floral captured my exact vision. We received so many compliments when our RSVPs were returned.

Art Paper Scissors: What design element or feature was a “must have” for your wedding invitation?

Kristen: I didn’t necessarily have a “must have” when I start looking at invitations. However, that changed quickly when we started talking to Lisa about the look we wanted. My “must have” was incorporating a cigar band. So naturally, my favorite part of our wedding invite was the lace cigar band with hemp string tied around. The string tied together to hold a tag with our initials and wedding date on it. We absolutely loved it! We felt like the lace connected our rustic them with the elegance of the invitation. Some of our guests told use they didn’t want to take apart the invitation because it was too pretty!

Art Paper Scissors: What advice do you have for other brides and grooms looking to incorporate their theme or personal elements into their wedding invitations?

Kristen: The best advice I could give is to go through the process together. I respected Joe’s opinions and he helped choose many of the details. Let me tell you, I am the ultimate worst at making decisions. Lisa definitely made the overall decision difficult because the three invitations she created were all so beautiful. He was very helpful and aided me in our final decisions with the invitations. Our tastes can definitely be different, but he always supports me over something he may prefer. We compliment each other in the best way possible!