Love Is In The Air
Friends and family are the focus at Brooke and Gordon's casual wedding celebration on the edge of the White Mountains

Story by Susan Grieve
Photography by Maine Tinker Photograpy

Brooke Maines and Gordon Webb knew virtually from the moment they met that they were meant to be together. They hit it off immediately over jokes and conversation at a bar in Portland’s Old Port neighborhood where Brooke was bartending and Gordy was a frequent patron. “We recognized very quickly that we were stronger and better people together than we were separately,” Brooke remembers. 

Gordy planned the proposal using the Grand Canyon as a backdrop. As he stood with his arms wrapped around her while they took in the view, Brooke attributed Gordy’s rapid heartbeat to his fear of heights. She turned and found him on one knee, ready to propose. Brooke and Gordy chose Hardy Farm in Fryeburg, Maine for their wedding weekend. “It was important to us to be in Maine but in a place where people could get away from it all and focus on each other.

We really love the White Mountain area and Hardy Farm was too pretty to pass up.” Planning a casual and laid-back weekend was important to Brooke and Gordy, and they began by asking Gordy’s grandfather to officiate the ceremony, which was held at Hardy Farm’s beautiful woodland chapel. Deciding to skip many of the traditional ceremony formalities, they chose to keep things simple and incorporate members of their families into the program, including having their siblings each give a speech as part of them ceremony.

When planning the reception, it was important to Brooke and Gordy to continue the casual and personal theme. “We truly wanted it to just be a dance party with good food and lots of drinks. We appreciated being able to step out of the spotlight while still having a great time with our loved ones,” Brooke says. Working closely with the team from A Family Affair, they saw their vision come to life. “We planned the fun things (food, drinks, and band) and then we were helpless after that. Paula and Margie really helped take this very unspecific image that I had and made the day what it was. We owe them everything.” 

The reception was a fun combination of food from a variety of food trucks and an epic dance party led by the Time Pilots. Guests were invited to dine by playing a “Brooke and Gordy” trivia game, led by Gordy’s two best friends from high school. 

The highlight of the evening for Brooke was an impromptu singalong: “At one point, during “Piano Man,” an unplanned circle of guests formed and we swayed and sang loudly to Billy Joel. It was one of the things I’ll remember most about that day. Everyone I love hugging each other and singing one of my favorite songs. It was an ode to the best things in life being unexpected.” After the reception, the after party continued in the barn with pizza and beer pong—a perfect end to the day!

In Brooke's Words
I’m so glad that…I said yes to a man with such great taste and cool ideas. Some of my favorite things about the wedding were his choosing! One of my favorite moments was…the “Piano Man” moment. And having our dogs at our ceremony!

I didn’t realize…how great having a big wedding would be. I wanted to elope, but Gordy convinced me otherwise. It was the BEST decision. Having every single person you love around you during that day is unlike any other experience.

I wish… we could have slowed the day down. Everything happens a mile a minute. I also wish we had eaten more! The food was so important to us and we didn’t have a bite!

I really liked…that we took ten minutes at the end of the ceremony to just be alone. We took some deep breaths and just soaked it in. It was great to celebrate in our own mini way right away.

My advice to other brides is… don’t sweat about controlling everything—some of my favorite moments were completely unplanned.

Maine Vendors
Photography: Maine Tinker Photography

Venue: Hardy Farm, Fryeburg

Wedding Planning and Design: A Family Affair of Maine

Food Trucks & Catering: BP’s Shuck Shack, Portland; Eighty 8 Donuts, Portland;
El Corazon, Portland; The Good Food Store, Bethel; Highroller Lobster Co., Portland;
Maine Mixologist, New Gloucester; Mami, Portland

Florist: Moonset Farm, Porter

Rings: Springer’s Jewelers

Hair: Bridal by Lizzy

Makeup: Danaface, Portland

Nails: H&E Paint Bar, Portland

Reception Lighting: Griffin & Griffin

Reception Entertainment: Time Pilots

Photo Booth: Maine Photo Camper Rentals