When Julia Leister got engaged to David Reilly, she knew she wouldn’t have to go far to find the perfect venue. In fact, it was right outside her window. Her family home, an 18th century farmhouse and property in Worcester, Pennsylvania, was the perfect combination of romance and sentiment. The icing on the homemade wedding cake was the fact that she and David also live on the farm. “I never considered anything else,” said Julia. “We said to each other, ‘We’re just gonna make it work, and it’s going to have to happen.’

In addition to the main house, the property also includes Julia and David’s apartment, a barn, and an old pool house that the family calls ‘the Creekhouse’. The Creekhouse doubles as a social area complete with a fire pit and the Zacharias creek flowing behind it. A few furry friends also call the farm home; nine horses, a few donkeys, a mini mule, goats, sheep, and a Zebu -- which is essentially a miniature bull. Horses have always been a lifelong passion of Julia’s, which was just one more reason the ultimate wedding destination was in her own backyard.

As young girls do, Julia had a vision for her wedding day. Getting married at the farm had always been part of that vision. After they got engaged in 2022, the couple started to imagine how it could all come together. Luckily, they weren’t naive to the legwork it takes to bring a wedding outside of a traditional venue to life. “Me being the Type-A brain that I am, I was already putting it all together in my head and how it was going to work,” said Julia.

Like the interior of the home, Julia’s style has always been classic with whimsical touches, and she wanted her wedding to reflect that. “I stayed true to what I wanted throughout the year and a half of planning. I wanted the flowers to be the bright focal point. End-of-summer garden party-estque is what I went for, so it was elevated without losing the fact that it was a backyard wedding.” With the house as a beautiful backdrop, they decided on the front yard for the ceremony, moving to a tent for the reception.

After the planning was underway and she had some of her vendors booked -- Robertson’s for the florals, Epicurean Delight for the catering -- Julia knew she still may need some help when it came to logistics. She called on Kaci Willwerth, owner and lead event planner of Simple Soiree to bring it all to life. “I would’ve had no idea what went into a backyard wedding of that scale. We had 150 people with lots of entertainment, so I don’t know how people usually do it. I wouldn’t have been able to do it myself. Kaci was a saving grace for sure.”

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW

An inherent sense of style is apparent when you meet Julia, and she credits her mom and grandmother’s love of antiques and interior design for influencing her. “My mom has always had a cool, unique style that’s definitely distinctively hers, but she's also always had fun trying new things. I think I also came by it naturally and learned a lot watching her growing up.” Currently a sales manager in the wholesale industry, Julia graduated from FIT and grew up working retail for brands like Anthropologie, so she’s never been a stranger to fashion. When wedding dresses entered the conversation, she knew she wanted something classic and simple, but she also tried to keep an open mind during the design process. “I let my mom, mother-in-law and cousin each pick dresses they liked because I wanted to try different styles on in case I fell in love with something I didn't expect to!”

THE DRESS

She began with a simple and productive strategy: finding a designer she liked and a local store that carried their styles. Not only did this make the process less overwhelming, but it curated her selections to her personal style. Julia decided to start with LeeAnn Belter which is sold at Page Six it’s haute, in Skippack, PA. “I made a few appointments when I first got engaged, thinking I wouldn’t find the one right away.”

She couldn’t have been more wrong. She found what she wanted at her very first appointment, although it wasn’t in a single dress. “I tried on two LeeAnn Belter dresses there. At first, I loved how the top of a dress fit me, but I wanted a straighter bottom. The designer was able to put the top and the bottom together of the two dresses that I loved,” she said of the match made especially for her. As a lover of fashion, she wasn’t green to the fact that coveted and classic styles like Jimmy Choo and Manolo come with a price tag. However, she ended up finding the perfect pair of Badgley Mischka pumps at Nordstrom Rack, which she wore for the big day. Almost as good as Manolos. Almost.

For the veil, she’d always imagined opting for something short and playful. “My style icon has always been Audrey Hepburn. People say I look like her.” However, when she tried on a LeeAnn Belter veil, she loved the classic lace and liked that it tied in the ethereal elements that come with a backyard wedding.

JUST A MORNING AT HOME

On the morning of the wedding, David was able to wake up in his own bed, and Julia and her bridesmaids began getting ready in Julia’s childhood bedroom. Natural makeup by Rachel Carbrey and sleek hair with her bangs brought more Audrey Hepburn into the final look. Just as she had hoped, the whimsical aesthetic of the house juxtaposed the simplicity of the dress perfectly. “It's decorated with such a mix of styles, patterns, and colors which both my mom and I love,” said Julia of the house. “ I wanted our wedding to be colorful and unique and whimsical but also still classic and I think the decor of the home really played into that.” One of Julia’s favorite photos out of the many captured by Rebecca Judd of Du Soleil Photo was her descent down the stairs, on her way to meet David for their first look. “I’m sure a lot of people say this, but getting ready was one of my favorite parts of the day.”

Heading into the ceremony, Julia had her mother’s determination to thank for making her procession one of the most memorable parts of the day. A grand piano was successfully rolled out to the front yard so her cousin, who is a pianist, could play as she walked down the aisle. For cocktail hour they had a singer and guitarist who doubled as a DJ to get the party going. Other entertaining touches for guests included a fashion sketch artist and a black and white photo booth. As for a guestbook, they decided to be modern and creative. “We had the vintage phone sign-in book, which is funny because people are definitely still figuring out what they are,” she said of their trendy touch. “We had to spread the word. Otherwise, it just looks like a decoration.” There was also a coffee table book for people to leave well wishes. “We had a book filled with Hollywood stars like Audrey Hepburn, James Dean, all these cool people. People could pick their favorite page and sign it.”

And is a wedding reception complete without cake? Surely not. For an at-home event, it was only fitting to have a family recipe. “My grandparents baked and iced it and then the caterer did the flowers. It was my grandma’s classic chocolate cake which is always a fan favorite, and then the topper was a vintage one I found on Etsy!

ICING ON THE CAKE

While having a wedding at your home certainly adds logistical challenges, it also brought personal touches that a traditional venue couldn’t provide like a pianist with a family connection, Grandma’s chocolate cake, and celebrating with the bride and groom in their very own backyard. So was it worth the months of prep, gardening, painting and stress to get the property just right? Julia says it was all just icing on the cake. “It was everything I imagined it would be and probably more. I don't think there's anything I would've done differently,” The venue was the icing on the cake, but it was the detail and style that Julia and David brought that was the vintage cake topper.