Em & Lukas’ vintage wedding at THEMUSEUM in downtown Kitchener was a perfect reflection of their personalities—thoughtful, playful, and deeply meaningful. With a guest list of 80, the couple created an intimate celebration rooted in sustainability, nostalgia, and personal touches. From cross-stitched centrepieces to a custom cocktail poster they now display at home. THEMUSEUM’s unconventional space, filled with character and history, set the tone for a wedding that felt more like a cozy gathering of loved ones than a formal affair. Every detail—from their candid-documentary style photos by Brendan Joel Photography to a tiered hot dog tower in place of cake—was a heartfelt nod to their story, and the vintage wedding they had dreamed of.

COUPLE: Em & Lukas

DATE: September 14, 2024

GUEST #: 80

CEREMONY & RECEPTION LOCATION: THEMUSEUM "We searched local wedding venues in our area. As soon as we toured it, we both fell in love with THEMUSEUM. I felt nostalgic from going there as a kid, and Em loved that they were a third space in the community, as well as not-for profit. It was a unique and fun space to host our vintage wedding." - L

PHOTOGRAPHER: Brendan Joel Photography "We were looking for a candid-documentary style photographer. Neither of us looked forward to taking pictures and felt this style may relieve our camera-shyness. We browsed online and stumbled on Brendan's page.Brendan's first impression was flexible, laid back, and also open to working to our comfort. He was able to lay out a plan and set expectations so we didn't feel pressure on the day. We booked him immediately, his energy and style matched us well.My favourite part was the posed photos. It was fun to do, and exceeded our expectations in how comfortable we felt. He helped us get out of our heads and into the moment. Working with Brendan was the most fun we've had with a photographer. The little posing we did was fun and Brendan was excited and easy going. He captured us being "us" and gave us pictures we love. I can't tell the difference between photos when we were posed or just enjoying the day. It also helped that he was very cool. He was the perfect choice to capture our vintage wedding!"- L

WEDDING THEME: "Our theme followed our colour palette, but focused on sustainability and our love for vintage trinkets. We came up with a vintage wedding theme. We wanted decorations that we could see in our home after, like picture frames and a poster of our custom cocktails. The centrepieces were a collection of Em's cross stitches brought in by ourselves, as well as friends and family. We ran old videos and photos on the tv screens at the venue, including a video of us we captured during a small civil ceremony." - L

TELL US YOUR STORY: "We met through a mutual friend. The banter and sparks were immediate, but we were in different places (physically and life wise). I could not get Em out of my head. Over a year later, we ended up in a wedding party together. I knew I couldn't wait until the wedding to see Em again. A happy birthday message evolved into phone calls, then eventually we saw each other in person. A day together evolved into weeks and months together, and it didn't take long until we knew "this is my forever person". Em admitted she thought about me often as well in between meeting and dating, but not until I admitted it first. When we started talking regularly, I was a near graduate of Computer Engineering, and Em was working in Mental health and Addictions. Through that time I learned how caring and compassionate Em was, in her time with me and the work she did. She also showed me how intelligent and thoughtful someone can be, and helped me learn things I had yet to learn about myself. She knows how to make me laugh like no one else can. Em would best describe me as "genuine, sensitive, curious, and ridiculous". I was someone she could laugh and be weird with, talk endlessly about philosophical nothings, share movies and video games, and most importantly share life with. Over the past 4 years, we've been in different cities, the same city, and all of them we have called home. I graduated and started my career, Em tried different types of work before going to college this past January. It still feels like yesterday that we just "began", and over the past 4 years we have made a family and home together. I feel the most comfortable being myself, and we let each other feel celebrated for who we are. I proposed at the Arboretum in Guelph, while we went for a walk. It was our first time going there and I knew I wanted to make it special. With a sleight of hand and surprise reveal, I was down on one knee, engagement ring in hand. I succeeded in surprising her, and through my nervousness forgot to take my sunglasses off. We could not have been more us." - L

FLOWERS: The Garden Shed "The flowers completely brought our vintage wedding theme to life." - L&E

GROOMS ATTIRE: Surmesur

BRIDESMAIDS ATTIRE: Sixpence Bridal

CATERING: Stone Crock Bakery

BIGGEST CHALLENGE: "Our biggest challenge was organizing everything, together. Em was all for organizing with spread sheets and taking charge, while I felt the planning was very overwhelming. When things began, we decided to have dedicated patio nights, going to our local bars to share a drink, our thoughts and our wants. Over glasses of wine, we came up with a list of three priorities - what was most important to both of us? These three priorities were what we wanted to look back on fondly, and helped us narrow our focus onto what mattered most to each of us." - L

FAVOURITE MEMORY: "We both have our own memorable moments, but our venue went above and beyond to keep the atmosphere fun. A staff member approached my mom to ask if they could bring a dinosaur costume (from a previous event) to the dance floor. An absolute yes, and it showed THEMUSEUM's commitment to making our wedding possible and unique - they really put in the effort to get to know us." - L&E"My favourite memory of the evening was doing our version of a wedding cake - a tiered hot dog tower. It started as a joke, but our caterer understood our vision and ran with it. Instead of a cake, we shared hot dogs while friends and family cheered." - Lukas"My favourite memory was our ceremony. We opted to do a civil ceremony so Lukas' dad could officiate the day of. We had our bests do a small speech, and we shared how we felt like no one else was in the room. It felt like a conversation with each person, and I'll never forget their words. I was truly surrounded by family." - Em

ADVICE FROM ONE COUPLE TO ANOTHER: "There are a few things we would suggest: Make an emergency contact list for your vendors and wedding party. Anything that came up, we certainly did not need to worry about day of.

- If you want someone you know to lead the ceremony/"officiate", do a civil ceremony or signing ahead of time. It was personal and touching to have someone we knew at the altar with us for the ceremony

- Talk to your vendors, send emails and be open to ideas. Our vendors were all creative, outgoing, and genuinely kind. The consistent communication made it so much easier when things went awry (and life happens, so they did)

- Be yourselves, and let yourself follow or stray from "tradition" as much as you want. This is your day, and your expectations matter. Honour old traditions and start new ones, we certainly followed some that our friends started and made some that made our wedding "ours"" - L&E

See this vintage wedding and other wedding stories at theweddingring.ca

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