What is your proposal story?
We took a long weekend trip to Carolina Beach, North Carolina. He had spent the previous months planning a surprise photoshoot with a photographer down at the beach. We got dressed up, headed down to the beach, and he popped the question in the sand! It was a complete surprise!
Tell us a little bit about your wedding.
We envisioned a warm, but bright, fall wedding! We chose Dennis Vineyards because of it’s lush grape vines, romantic fountain back-drop, and warm reception space.
The choice for flowers and the color of bridesmaids‘ dresses were all based on how we could compliment the colors of fall without blending in too much. We wanted the ambience and photos to be very light and airy, rather than moody or vibrant.
Tell us about your attire choices.
Attire was very simple for the girls, yet very specific for the guys. We wanted the girls to choose a dress style that fit them best (as long as it was the color we chose).
The guys ended up wearing a very specific outfit based on what I envisioned complimenting the girls and making sense for the time of year. Overall, we wanted the bridal party to have a semi-formal look, rather than a black-tie look.
What was the most important to the two of you while planning? Was there anything that you chose to splurge on or skip?
We’d be lying if we didn’t say that sticking to a budget was very important to us. However, we did decide that we would slightly stretch the budget for things that would overall enhance everyone’s experience. So, we chose to splurge a bit on the DJ package and the alcohol. We thought that if people had a good drink and some good music to dance to, that the party would be poppin’!
What were your favorite parts of the day?
Our favorite part of the day was the reception! The stress of the day started to melt away as we hugged our friends and family, and enjoyed some good food, beer, and wine!
Tell us about your wedding flowers.
The flowers were gorgeous! Creams, greens, golds, and pinks all complimented the fall colors that surrounded us! It was also very special to have a tribute to my now husband Phillip by having a gold succulent in the center of my bouquet.
What creative or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?
We kept everything so simple. We purposely stripped everything down so we could experience all the joy of the day with each other and keep as much stress out.
Tell us about your wedding cake.
The wedding cake was to die for! We chose a vanilla-almond cake, with a hazelnut icing, and an apple-pie filing! Delicious! All of our guests raved about it! We took the top tier home and ate it the days following the wedding.
What did you do for favors?
We chose to do cute little honey jars that had stickers saying “Meant to Bee” on them! We figured if we were going to give favors, we wanted them to be used (and not just thrown in the trash).
Did you have any DIY elements?
We DIY’ed our charger plates on the reception tables. We bought white chargers online, and painted them sage green to match the rest of our wedding aesthetic. We also chose to have ‘thank you’ notes at each plate setting instead of sending them out post-wedding.
Did you include any family heirlooms or special traditions?
My mother had two charms made to hang on my bouquet that included pictures of my late grandparents and a sweet quote.
Do you have any advice for couples planning their weddings now?
Our first piece of advice would be – Do what YOU want to do for your big day. No one else’s wishes or visions matter for your big day! This should be a day that is perfect for you.
Our second piece of advice would be: don’t sweat the imperfections (because there will be mistakes and details missed). At the end of the day, none of those things matter – and the mishaps will just end up being a funny story down the road.
