The anduaga Wedding:
a long expected journey
Theme: Lord of the Rings and A Song of Ice and Fire (aka A Game of Thrones)
Location: Lakewood Ranch Golf & Country Club
Date: October 9, 2021
Yes, it was finally my turn! After several COVID-19 related postponements, my husband and I finally got our day in the sun – literally, it was terribly bright that day! I am so excited to get to share this adventure with you.
My husband and I both very nerdy, and so I thought a great way to make the wedding fun for the both of us was to have a theme based on our favorite books, which just so happened to go together very well. My favorites have been The Lord of the Rings ever since I was little, and his favorites are The Song of Ice and Fire series (or Game of Thrones as most know of it today).
Our goal was to incorporate the aesthetics of the books – with some fun easter eggs for the fans – while still feeling like a “traditional wedding”. The design was created to represent the fun-loving nature of me and my husband so our event felt uniquely like ours. Which is how Fabled Events was born…
The lush green ceremony venue in picturesque Lakewood Ranch, Florida created a romantic enchanted forest feel that practically made you forget you were in Florida (except for the blistering sunshine of course). Silver elven-esque lanterns adorned the aisle and the ceremony was a field of greenery with the grass, vines, florals, and green bridesmaids dresses creating the forest-like effect.
Lanterns were provided and installed by Outside the Box Rentals. Florals were designed by myself.
Devising thematic music for the ceremony was key to creating the romantic fantasy aesthetic. The Lord of the Rings films have incredible soundtracks filled with so many soft, beautiful tracks. But since the books and films are so close to my heart, I also wanted to include some nostalgia. The family and bridal party processed in to “Concerning Hobbits” from The Fellowship of the Ring and for the bride’s procession, I chose a clip from The Return of the King from Aragorn’s coronation.
Our family and wedding party procession was long due to having lots of bridesmaids and groomsmen, and the bride’s procession was quite long due to the breath-taking staircase entrance, so our incredible DJ Jody helped adjust the tracks to flow seamlessly.
I really went for the Elvish vibes with my look – floral embroidered dress, floral tiara, cape, the whole works. I even added my own LOTR touch to my shoes!
And as a little easter egg for our wedding party – we provided all the bridesmaids Evenstar necklaces from The Lord of the Rings films and all the groom’s party with a Hand of the King lapel pin instead of a boutonnière, as depicted by HBO’s Game of Thrones.
A few of our wedding party modeling our fandom accessories beautifully.
They caught my man crying. Honestly, one of my favorite things to see at weddings.
And a few of my girls too!
I am super introverted, and the thought of reading vows even in front of our closest family and friends was a little intimidating. So in the spirit of our theme, we wrote our love story to share with everyone and had our officiant read it and weave it into our vows. Then we finished off the ceremony with a sand unity ceremony matching our wedding colors.
My husband has immediate family living in Mexico who couldn’t join us due to COVID, so in 2021 fashion we had them Zoom into the ceremony and gave them a quick greeting before moving on for pictures.
Now on to the super nerdy fun – the reception
The centerpieces were the star of this show – and probably our most dramatic use of the books/films. We decided our table names just had to be inspired by our theme, so we named each table based on a location from the books. My vision was a representative landscape or microcosm of each fictional location but I had no idea how to pull it off until my husband recommended 3D printing. It was an incredibly cost-effective way to create models exactly how I wanted instead of scouring the earth for resources that may not have fit my vision to a tee – complete game changer!
Here are a few of our favorites, but check out my Instagram @fabledevents to see the rest!
Starting from Top, Left to Right:
Lothlorien, The Shire/Bag End
Dragonstone, Highgarden
My favorite addition to our seating arrangements were my map seating charts! Were they very utilitarian, particularly for the guests who know nothing about any of this? No…but they fit the theme beautifully and looked awesome! (And we provided traditional table cards for those who needed some guidance.)
And it wouldn’t be a true literary-themed wedding without some quotes from the books incorporated into the decor and a book page bouquet. Canvases were hand-painted by me, and I had an awesome time making them!
Book Page bouquet made by Etsy Seller TreecycledCrafts
This wedding was so much fun to plan, for me and my husband both. And even though the COVID pandemic made it so hard to get to the finish line, all the heart and soul we put into making this wedding look and feel like us made it all worth it in the end. Our creativity brought compliments from friends, family, vendors, and even strangers…and I knew in my heart that there were other couples like us who want to see more nerdy themed inspiration for their weddings.
I hope our story, and our other Fabled Events couples, have inspired you! And if you want to plan your own wedding like this, I would love to help guide you on your journey. Happy planning!
Vendor Team
Catering and Coordinating: Lakewood Ranch Golf & Country Club team (@lwrgccweddings)
Ceremony Photographer: Tom Valdez Photography (@tomvaldezphotography)
Hair & Makeup: (@mlgsalon)
Ceremony Rentals & Decorator: Outside the Box Event Rentals (@outsidetheboxeventrentals)
DJ: Grant Hemond & Associates (@ghamobiledjs)
Baker: Edible Elegance by Eli (@edibleelegance)
Flowers: Provided by Bloominous, self-designed