Wedding | Emma & Gionnie

Tell us a little about  yourselves!

I’m a writer and Gionnie is a musician. We’ve known each other since high school but didn’t quite get together until some years after high school. Where we quickly got out of Long Island and moved across the country to LA together and started a new life hand in hand. With lots of jobs in between, we finally opened the first vintage store Ratstar in 2021 on Virgil and Melrose followed by the second one in Portland, Oregon in 2023. Following our 8 year anniversary of being together we got married this August on the 8th month of the year under the old growth forest, and undammed rivers of Molalla, Oregon. We plan on opening our 3rd vintage store in North County, San Diego with everything we’ve acquired for the wedding sometime this fall!

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

I always wanted to get married in the forest ever since I saw Twilight - which is also when I started planning this, about 14 years ago when Breaking Dawn came out, ha! I wanted something natural looking, not too polished. And the old growth forest at Trout Creek couldn’t be more perfect. There was a river the bluest color I've veer seen, that flowed through it and a hot tub and sauna to relax in every moment we could. We seriously couldn’t have dreamt up a better spot.

How many guests did you have?

About 65 people came and Molly Adams captured our day. We knew all the staff, so once the wedding part ended around 10:30pm we invited them to party with us also, so by that time we had about 72 guests.

What was your budget?

Well, at first we had a budget of 15k however, that got unrealistic pretty fast. So then we made it 20k and  we pretty much stayed on budget, which was impressive for all that we did. We thrifted every single plate and cup. All the little trinkets. Pretty much everything, then once the wedding invites started hearing we were doing that we had our friends even helping us thrift or offering us sets of china they already had that they didn’t quite know what to do with and felt  this was perfect for them. My dress I got on eBay for $60 a vintage dress from the 70s with a rose already embroidered right on the inside of my chest which was very fitting for me. 

We own two vintage stores called Ratstar, so thrifting is a part of our day to day life anyways, it only felt right to thrift everything for our wedding. We plan on putting a cafe in our new location and using everything we bought there!

Tell us about your outfits.

The dress like I said was a whopping $60 on eBay although it didn’t quite fit me, so my friend who owns a sewing studio (Bubs Studio) to corset the entire back for me which she hardly charged me for. We were missing the perfect lace to use to tie up the back until I found it  bundled up at the bottom of a Goodwill bin in Portland a month before the wedding. I probably paid about 25 cents for. The veil was a scarf I had found at Ratstar and the head piece I sewed it  onto was something I found thrifting. It was a random idea I had falling asleep one night very close to the wedding, because I didn’t quite love any of the veils I had thrifted. I sewed it up in the morning and it couldn’t have looked more like I envisioned.

The after party dress my friend Donna had posted something similar on her brands page Brodytm. However, I was too late to  purchase since she sells out quick, so she so sweetly made me my own custom one with more frill and details.  

Gionnie's outfit started with the pants, the leather pants handmade by our friend we met at Ratstar when it first opened in 2021 who’s been making pants for rockstars for years now, Lenny Kravitz being one of them… who doesn’t know about Lennys perfectly fitting leather pants he wears! He had to finally buy a pair of custom pants from our friend Jordan from Charmont Des Noir. What better time to splurge on those than our wedding?! He found the perfect off white/cream color soft leather to work with downtown LA and got working. He had them done within two weeks. 

Then it was time for the search to find the perfect shirt. Gionnie found a vintage Burberry poet blouse with a 1970s feel to it on Grailed for $50. He knew he’d wear his dads cream colored knitted Kangol that’s been kept neatly in a bag with his 10 others from the 80s cocked backwards and a little to the side, just like his dad wore it. The shoes were the brand New Rock, a Spanish brand that makes hardcore punk/ goth style leather boots. He searched up a pointed boot on their website and found the only fully studded and decked out pair they had perfect for the occasion.

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning  your wedding?

I wanted the wedding to feel like us, every part of it. I didn’t want it to feel like it could be anyone else’s wedding but us. And I think we did a good job at that. 

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

All the thrifting/ vintage/ chaotic maximalism elements were very important to us. That’s what made it us and so unique. Having the river and nature surrounding us as well tied it all together. 

Any tips for couples getting married?

Enjoy every moment, the day goes by so fast. Don’t get caught up in the small stuff, the guests won’t realize what is missing they only know what is in front of them. So enjoy what is there, and who is there and live in the moment. This is your day to finally relax, the day is here all the  planning is over. Enjoy it!

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

Although we planned it ourselves, Saavy Food Co. is how we actually made it all possible. Without their knowledge, staff and cooking we could not of done any of this without them! 

Photographer: Molly Adams @mollymeetsmagic | Planning & Styling: by the couple | Flora: picked by the couple at Wapato Island Farm, Emma forgot to carry the bouquet | Ceremony & Reception Location: Trout Creek Wilderness Lodge @troutcreekwildernesslodge | Makeup & Hair: by Emma | Catering & Beverages: Swagat Indian Cuisine & Saavy Food Co. @savvyfoodco | Cake: Butter PDX @butterpdx | Photobooth: Stumptown Booth @stumptownbooth | Tattoo Artist: Twenty Second Swan @twentysecondswan | Yoga & Soundbath: Scared Space Oceanside @sacredspaceoceanside | Dresses: 

Ebay, Ratstar, Brodytm @ebay @shopratstar @brodytm | Gionnie's Outfit: Charmont Des Noir (Pants) @atelierdescharmont & (Top) Vintage Burberry | Veil: Handmade by Emma with items from Ratstar

@shopratstar | Engagement Ring: Etsy @etsy | Wedding Rings: Vintage from Ebay | Gionnie's Shoes: New Rock