Waterford Cotton Exchange Wedding | Sam and Libby

Congratulations to Sam and Libby! They were married on November 23rd at Libby’s home church in Muskego and then spent the rest of the day partying with friends and family at the Waterford Cotton Exchange. Many of their guests and members of the bridal party traveled from afar to join in the celebrations, and Wisconsin rewarded all of us with a chilly but bright and sunny day!

As you may remember, I documented Sam and Libby’s engagement photos last Spring at Seven Bridges Park: https://www.gracecreatives.com/seven-bridges-engagement-session-sam-libby/

Their wedding day was a fantastic mixture of everything that makes Sam and Libby so unique and lovable; large families, friends from all walks of life, punny jokes, frisbee breaks, dedication to the Lord, generous hearts, and enthralling storytelling.

My associate shooter, Jackie, and I loved capturing all their biggest moments via photographs, and here are some of my favorite memories from their big day:

FAVORITE THINGS:

Prayer behind the door
- Sam and Libby didn’t do a first look. However, before the ceremony, he and she shared a special prayer around the corner of a door in Libby’s getting ready room. This very special moment between them was witnessed by a room full of female family members and Libby’s closest girlfriends. Libby couldn’t help but exclaim “Hey Sam, isn’t this just a’door’able?!” The whole room burst into laughter and Sam just smiled while making an “‘oh geez’ that’s my wife, people” expression. It was too funny!
- My other favorite part tied to this special moment was right after the prayer when Sam’s young niece couldn’t help but comment on them praying around a door and said “that was weird.” The whole room once again burst into giggles.

Sam’s Frisbee Skills
- My associate shooter, Jackie, got some pretty fantastic shots of Sam and his dudes killing time before the ceremony. In this scene, Sam’s friends, father, and future father-in-law are wearing their fancy suits and also making epic frisbee catches/ throws.

Sam & Libby SHOES
- Libby’s wedding shoes were ballet flats designed by a company called ‘Sam & Libby.’ Like, what?! How perfect and fun!

Sweet Exchanges With One Another
- Throughout the traditional catholic ceremony, Sam and Libby made simple glances and simple secret comments to one another. I loved witnessing this and could just picture them doing the same exact thing throughout the rest of their lives while at movies, plays, their children’s performances, and other church services.

#UltimateWisconsinSnack
- Immediately following the ceremony and family pictures at the altar, I stole Sam and Libby away for a few formal portraits in front of the church. It was during these first few steps as husband and wife that Sam snacked on some string cheese. So random, haha, but out of all their moments, I am really happy that I captured this #winningWisconsin one.

Individual Portraits With Bridal Party
- The individual portraits of Sam with each of his groomsmen and Libby with each of her bridesmaids were so much fun! Each person in their bridal party was so incredibly special and I loved being able to see their personalities, history and inside jokes come forth in the images.

Special Details – Donation Favors, Bible Verses, and UP The Movie
- There were several simple touches that Sam and Libby displayed during their reception at the Waterford Cotton Exchange. For favors, Sam and Libby allowed their guests to vote for their favorite charity option. As a guest book, Sam and Libby asked attendees to highlight their favorite bible verse. Lastly, Sam and Libby love the movie “UP” and incorporated two special painted items (a mailbox and canvas print) near their gift table.

The Stolen Pie
- For their ‘cake cutting’ ceremony, Sam and Libby baked a pie together (Bourbon pecan Chocolate, folks!) and let all of their guests know how great it was after the first few bites. As dinner went on, I noticed several guests walk up to Sam and Libby’s sweetheart table with their own forks. Turns out everyone wanted ‘in’ on the pie action which then turned into friends stealing the pie. I was lucky enough to get a small bite of this glorious pie, and agree on it’s ‘steal-able’ deliciousness. At the end of the dinner, Sam and Libby had plenty of pie leftovers to bring home with them, but it was funny to see everyone “battle” for it.