Another lovely Wednesday morning is upon us, SMPers… and you know what that means. Yes, an entire day filled to the brim with darling details, sweeter than sweet moments and pretty, pretty inspiration galore. I know, right?!? We are excited, too. And since we are literally bursting at the seams with eight fabulous affairs that are simply guaranteed to make you smile, don’t forget to add a little extra time to your itinerary for some gallery gazing, swooning and the like. Trust us, you don’t want to miss a moment.
Up first in our pretty parade is a darling Alabama affair by Stephen Jerkins that I simply couldn’t adore more if I tried. Boasting one very charming DIY detail after another, this wedding is overflowing with so much love, it’s contagious. What’s more adorable than the groom proposing in the same exact spot that the bride’s own parents and grandparents were engaged? Or the bride wearing her grandmother’s headpiece? Or the entire wedding taking place on the bride’s great-grandparent’s farm? Yep, absolutely nothing is more adorable… and you can see every last heartwarming moment in the full gallery of images!
Click here to see the entire gallery of images!
From the Bride… Every wedding is a family affair, but as our wedding day approached, my husband-to-be and I increasingly realized that a marriage, not just a wedding, is something shared by an entire community of the people who have made us what we vowed to love. So we decided that not only did we want our wedding to be personal and reflect our passions and our personal choices; we also wanted to incorporate the history of our friends and families into that day.
We had already gotten started on the right foot. Nick proposed to me on a November day sitting on the antique green velvet couch where my grandfather had proposed to my grandmother and my dad proposed to my mother. At that point, though, we hadn’t realized the stage was set…That realization came to me one day during my engagement when my grandmother pulled out her wedding ensemble from 1958 for me to try on. She’d kept it all–the knee-length eyelet fabric dress, the white pumps, the birdcage veil, and the feathered headpiece. That headpiece. As soon as I put it on I knew I wanted to wear it, both because of its stunning retro look and because I knew that I wanted a piece of her with me when I walked down the aisle.
From that day on all the pieces fell into place. We decided to get married on my great-grandparents’ 160-acre farm in the countryside of north Alabama, where I’m from. Instead of having traditional wedding cake, I asked my dad to make his famous Italian Cream Cake, and in lieu of a groom’s cake Nick’s mother made his grandma’s classic chocolate delight.
Nick and I were both English majors in college and now Nick works as a freelance photographer/videographer, so we incorporated our love of books and of cameras into our Save-the-Dates (book cover postcards from Penguin) and our reception centerpieces. Nick also designed our invitation suite. We’ve also enjoyed traveling together to Italy, Israel, Egypt, and Mozambique, so our guest book was, naturally, a huge collection of vintage postcards from those places and from New York City, a place we love and where we decided to honeymoon.
In the midst of all the vintage family pieces, I will admit it was fun to sneak in something I got from nowhere but–you guessed it–Ebay for $19.99! I was thrilled when I found my vintage reception dress for such a great price. Sometimes your something old can also be something new.
We were also happy to ask my grandfather, who married my mom and dad, to perform our wedding. And so many other family and friends contributed to the day, making cupcakes, cutting the grass, arranging bouquets, and a million other details that took hours of time. It was humbling for both of us. On top of the love our family and friends showed us, we could not have asked for more talented or considerate vendors. Stephen did an excellent job with the photography, his wife Amanda created the most stunning florals, and Dish Cafe was the cherry (or specialty spinach dip, I should say) on top of a wonderful day.
Many couples have told me they don’t recall a single moment from their wedding, that it was just a blur and they were simply ready to get away. Nick and I were so grateful that, on the contrary, on our wedding day we had a blast, surrounded by our best friends, dancing and singing and celebrating the gifts we’ve been given.
Wedding Photography: Stephen Jerkins / Wedding Cinematography: Mark Slagle / Floral Design: Amanda Jerkins Design / Wedding Location: Private Residence / Wedding Invitations: The Groom / Bride’s Shoes: Love / Headpiece: Heirloom, recovered by Epoca by Claire Lifsey / Wedding Dress: J.Crew / Reception Dress: eBay / Catering: Dish Cafe