Some couples at Mitchell Grove choose one of the arches from our Lending Closet to frame their vows. Others? They bring their own vision to life. This family arrived with an arch they had crafted themselves—branches carefully pieced together in advance, then brought to the orchard and set up on site.
The result was a homemade arch unlike any other—distinct, original, and unmistakably theirs. It stood in the orchard facing the redwoods, with apple trees flanking the sides. The design brought a personal, handmade touch that shaped the ceremony space in a way no rented arch could match.
That’s what makes DIY weddings so powerful. Every handmade element carries meaning. Whether it’s an arch built from branches, a quilt laid across the ceremony benches, or a pie baked by a grandmother, it’s the people and their ideas that give each wedding its soul.
This branch arch was proof: sometimes the best backdrop isn’t the most polished or rented, but the one shaped by family hands.