Jo & Bobby

September 15

Mt. Vernon, Washington

~~~~~~~~

Q & A with the Bride: 

1. What was the one thing about your venue that made you know it was the one?

My parents live in North Carolina and Bobby is from Texas – we both loved the Southern charm and feel of The Grand Willow. The venue was gorgeous with a large beautiful willow tree in the front yard, lights surrounding the greenery and hanging over the courtyard, French doors, grand staircase – it was perfect. There were several areas for guests to spread out both indoors and out and we hadn’t found that classic, romantic feel at any other venue. It was truly unique.

2. Which three details from your wedding were your favorites?

I’m sure like any bride, I just adored my dress – especially the pockets. I wore a piece of lace from my mother’s wedding dress sewn onto the flower sash. My something old was a necklace pendant I’ve owned for years and wear nearly every day – I put on my bracelet; My something new were my dress and fabulous glittering shoes; My something borrowed and blue was a handkerchief with blue flowers from Bobby’s mom’s wedding that I kept in my pocket. It felt wonderful to have those pieces from two amazing women incorporated in my dress.

In lieu of a traditional guest book, we had a personalized map made with pins in the places we’ve been and love. There was a quote at the bottom that read “The greatest gifts we can give ourselves are roots and wings,” and the guest book next to it invited guests to share with us the places they have fallen in love with. We wanted to hear the adventures and stories from our friends and thought if we visited those places we could send them a picture thanking them for the idea.

The dessert table and DIY projects. The favors, seating chart, programs and other details were definitely a labor of love. Instead of a bridal shower my bridesmaids, girlfriends and I got together and spent a whole day working on these little details. It was much more meaningful than receiving a bunch of gifts – not that there’s anything wrong with that – and turned out beautifully! The dessert table was like something out of a magazine. It’s one of my favorite pictures. With the crates and lights, it was rustic and elegant at the same time. We had four different kinds of cupcakes and two kinds of cookies.

3. Give us the one moment from your wedding you can’t stop thinking about.

One of the best moments was when we played the shoe game. Many of our family members are spread out across the country, and it was a fun way to let them learn a little about us and laugh at some unexpected answers. We picked personal questions and played just before our first dance. It was great having our (amazing) MC/DJ ask, who was the reigning champ of our fantasy football league and hearing our guests laugh loudly when I shot my shoe up proudly, and Bobby slowly raised mine in shame. Or clap and laugh harder when Bobby’s shoe was raised to the question “Who takes the longest to choose what to wear.” Of course, they liked it when we disagreed on a question. It was memorable and a lot of our family members had never seen something like that before. Our MC made it light, fun and people are still talking about how hilarious he was throughout the night. It was a really fun time.

Rachel & Dylan

September 14

Wilmington, North Carolina

~~~~~~~~

Q&A with the Bride

Which three details from your wedding were your favorites?

1. The archway that Tamara (of Tamara Wade Designs) built and decorated for us looked magical when she finished with it. The burlap and clustered flowers were the ideal combination of rustic and romantic.
2. The fingerprint tree that we used in lieu of a more traditional guest book was also both a crowd-pleaser and a terrific way to display a memory from the wedding. We had it designed on Etsy.com and it came with leaf-colored ink and a pen. Our guests put thumbprint “leaves” on the tree and signed their print. We framed it afterward and it’s hanging in our home, a constant reminder of our loved ones sharing an awesome day with us.
3. The old books tied with lace and the lemon-lined Mason jars were two little decorative things we’re pretty proud of. The books came from thrift and antique stores all over the state. Me, my Mom, and Tamara would pick a few up at a time for pennies and at the wedding, Tamara tied them in little bundles with lace craft ribbon to scatter on the tables. They were a touch I thought of because of my love for reading and literature. As for the lemon jars, they went with our color palette and were such a happy, fresh addition to the tables.

If you could offer one piece of advice for other couples planning their wedding, what would it be?

There are two things that my husband and I would offer as key advice to anyone planning a wedding. First, know that you can absolutely achieve your wedding vision, no matter what that budget is. The budget simply dictates how you get there. Most of what we used for decoration we either made ourselves at a fraction of the cost, or we ordered it from somewhere like Etsy, where you can get one-of-a-kind items at-cost or just above. Second, don’t be afraid to plan the wedding that best fits who you are. For us, I felt strongly that I didn’t want an out-of-the-box wedding, so I planned it myself. Our ceremony was a mix of traditional passages and poetic recitations. We wrote our own silly-romantic vows to one another (which lightened the solemn mood considerably!), but we also repeated the traditional “til’ death do us part” bit. We skipped a receiving line altogether, and took many of our formal portraits before the ceremony so we’d have more time with family and friends. Our recessional was The Imperial March from Star Wars! The point is this—to be your happiest and most comfortable, include plenty of elements that speak to the people you are. Embrace that!

Give us the one moment in your wedding day you can’t stop thinking about.

For both of us, it’s probably the moment before the wedding when we saw one another all dressed up for the first time. We were getting ready to take our “First Look” photos and our photographer (Melissa Stallings) had Dylan stand with his back turned to me as I approached so that she could capture that instant where we laid eyes on each other for the first time. That was one emotional moment for everyone! I highly recommend a first look session for the bride and groom before the ceremony. It gave us more time to be with our guests after the wedding, and seeing each other beforehand allowed us a precious moment of privacy and a chance to shake off our pre-wedding jitters before the ceremony. 

Emily & Allan

November 18

Sacramento, California

~~~~~~~~

Q & A with the Bride:

1. What was the one thing about your venue that made you know it was the one?

It was so unique and had beautiful vintage decor. It’s in a very old, historical building in downtown Sacramento. The Metropolitan Ballroom, which is where we held the reception, is on the 7th floor, and has an amazing view of the state capital. I always imagined having an outdoor wedding, but I had trouble finding the right venue in the Sacramento area. We actually went to The Citizen randomly on our way to look at another venue, and we just fell in love with it. It really fit our vintage theme, and it was great to be able to have the wedding party and our families all staying in the same place where the event took place.

2. Which three details from your wedding were your favorites?

1. The vintage vignette that served as the guestbook table and featured the escort cards that was outside the entrance of the ballroom. The details were just so amazing, and it was inspired by 1920s-30s era travel and also by the Indiana Jones and Jungle Cruise ride in Disneyland! We love Disneyland, and I love going through the lines in those rides because the details are so fun and old-fashioned. I also loved the escort cards; they were luggage tags with skeleton keys. I stamped guest’s names on the tags with a typewriter font stamp set and then tied on the skeleton keys. My bridesman, Ray, (my best friend, who in was in my wedding party, helped me with them, and it was a lot of work, but I love that it was a personal touch and something that I got to do with my best friend.

2. The cake and dessert table because I really wanted a lot of different cakes and desserts. I loved all of the different cake stands, and the vintage books that were on the table.

3. The floral arrangements were amazing and Bob, my florist, did such an amazing job with my my bouquet and my bridal party’s bouquets. I really loved all of the centerpieces, and he went beyond floral arrangements and created beautiful vintage table tops.

3. Give us the one moment from your wedding that you cannot stop thinking about. 

Allan’s daughter, Amalia, and my niece, Paige, who were our flower girls, surprised us with a choreographed dance to Justin Bieber’s “Never Say Never.” It was so amazing, and they had been working on it for a month. We had no idea that they were planning on performing at the wedding! I was so proud of them because they did such a great job memorizing the moves, and they were so brave to perform in front of over 100 people! I was a cheerleader in high school, and loved choreographing dances so it was so neat to see the two of them doing something I love so well! It was just such a fun surprise and everybody loved it!

Dana & Peyton

July 14

Dobbin, Texas

~~~~~~~~

Q & A with the Bride:

What was the one thing about your venue that made you know it was the one?

When we first toured, they were still renovating the property. We loved the vision shared of what Olde Dobbin Station would eventually look like and felt that it was a perfect fit for the vintage/homemade wedding we wanted. I especially loved the brick columns, chandeliers, windows, and the door. 

Which three details from your wedding were your favorites?

This is hard to answer. I feel that everything was my favorite. I loved my dress and would wear it every day if that was an option. I loved the string quartet. It was fun picking out classical and contemporary songs for the playlist. I also loved our food, both the beautiful cakes and the breakfast dinner. We often made breakfast for dinner while dating, and felt it was a meaningful and fun dinner choice. 

Give us the one moment in your wedding day you can’t stop thinking about.

I loved our First Look. Our photographer Kimberly did a wonderful job capturing our time together before the ceremony. It allowed us to connect, to pray together, and to calm our excited/anxious hearts before the wedding started.

Inspiration for your wedding decor can come from anywhere – and a favorite movie, especially a classic film like the1952  Gene Kelly/Debbie Reynolds favorite Singin’ in the Rain, is a great place to start. We love how the creative Savannah-based vendor team, lead by Morgan Gallo Events and Azelle Photography, took this idea to heart by creating a style shoot full of Old Hollywood glamour and a touch of whimsy. Of particular note are the bright color palette, old school-meets-modern lounge area, raindrop-inspired details at every turn (love that cake!), and the vintage umbrellas hanging above the dance floor. Who said that rain on your wedding day is a bad thing? Check out the stunning, inspiring photos below – plus a bonus video from this gorgeous shoot.