It goes without saying that we are a wee bit excited about our first EVER Fashion & Beauty e-mag. It’s just page after page of prettiness we poured our hearst into and we were be-YOND excited to share it with all of you. Because, really, it’s for all of you. A present of the SMP sort, and we sure hope you love it as much as we do. And how can you not when it’s filled to the brim with inspiration a’plenty and gorgeous real weddings like this one by the super talented Kristin Vining? (The gallery of this wedding is just to die for). It’s just a little peek into all the pretty that are on the pages of the new Fashion & Beauty e-mag, so it goes without saying you’ll want to set aside some time to get lost in all the lovely! And you can do so right here.
From the Bride… We met while living in the same apartment complex in Charlotte, North Carolina, during the summer of 2007. This was the perfect place to live during that time of our lives because we were transitioning from college life into the real world. The complex was filled with young people, and there were always social events going on. At one of the many pool parties, I remember discussing with my girlfriends, “Wow, I have a serious crush on that guy.” Apparently, Brandon was thinking the same exact thing about me. There was a very strong connection from the beginning and plenty of flirting all summer long. That same fall, Brandon asked me to be his girlfriend. :) There is no doubt that we were both meant to be living at that post-college frat pad of an apartment complex during that time … maybe it was fate, or just good timing, but living there changed our lives for the better!
On November 3, 2010, Brandon and I were getting ready to head to a fancy dinner to celebrate three years of dating. As we were about to walk out the door, Brandon pulled out a surprise gift! When I opened it, I was so excited that he had purchased us a new digital SLR camera for us to take on our Maui vacation that we were leaving for in a few days. We both love photography, so this was a perfect gift. I was already over the moon at this point! So we set the camera up to test it out and used the self-timer to take a picture together before heading out to dinner. After the picture was taken … I said my standard line, “Do we look cute?” and I went to view the photos that we had just snapped of ourselves. As I scanned through the two pictures, there was an extra photo of a sign that said “Will you marry me?!” I was completely confused and caught off guard, but as I turned to look at Brandon, he was down on one knee with the ring and he popped the question! There was screaming, many tears, and much laughter, and I obviously said YES! Then, instead of going to dinner, Brandon had arranged to have prepared food and wine/champagne catered in, which was AMAZING because he knew that I would want to make phone calls to friends and family! After making our calls and eating our delicious meal, we walked over to one of our favorite spots in Charlotte, Sullivan’s, for dessert! YUM! The entire night was absolutely perfect for us! The BEST thing about the proposal, for me, was that I was completely surprised. I had no idea — not the slightest clue — that we were going to be engaged that night! Then two days later we were off to Maui for a week to celebrate our engagement. :)
Overall, our planning process went quite smoothly and was rather enjoyable (Not that there were no stressful moments! HA!) thanks to all of our FABULOUS vendors, especially our wedding planner, Kate FitzGerald with I Do Details Events. Without her, I don’t think our planning would have been quite as much fun… Brandon and I were both very involved in the planning process and made most decisions together. I would say that I was the detail person when it came to making choices such as flowers, linens, etc. And Brandon was great at contacting the vendors and keeping us organized. I truly believe that planning our wedding together brought us even closer as a couple. I think that the most unique thing about our wedding was that we felt like all of our guests meshed really well together and seemed to have a wonderful time. We had friends and family coming from all over the country that did not know each other, so we tried to plan events so that the guests could get to know each other prior to the wedding day. By the night of the wedding, it felt as though the entire room of people were great friends. Kristin Vining Photography did an amazing job capturing the joy and fun in the room that night. Besides the union of our marriage, one of the most important things to us on our wedding day was that our guests were having a good time together, and I feel as though we succeeded!
Wedding Photography: Kristin Vining Photography / Ceremony: St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Charlotte, North Carolina / Reception: The Mint Museum Uptown in Charlotte, North Carolina / Wedding Consulting + Planning: Kate FitzGerald of I Do Details Event Planning / Floral Design: The Place For Flowers / Wedding Cinematography: Richard Israel + Timm Young of Pie & Mash Filmworks / Catering: Something Classic / Wedding Cake: The Wow Factor Cakes / Wedding Invitations + Stationery: Nuage Mulberry Digital Art / Entertainment: Split Second Sound / Rentals: Classic Party Rentals / Wedding Favors: Burgers for the Trolley / Transportation: Sunway (Formerly Trolleys Inc) / Photo Booth: ShutterBooth / Accommodations: The Ritz-Carlton Charlotte / Rehearsal Dinner: Enso Asian Bistro & Sushi Bar / Wedding Dress: Vera Wang / Bride’s Shoes: Christian Louboutin / Bride’s Headpiece: Tasha via Nordstrom / Hair + Makeup: Lindsey Regan Thorne of Be Pretty / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Jenny Yoo via Bella Bridesmaid / Bridesmaids’ Gifts: Tory Burch Flip Flops + J.Crew Jewelry / Groom’s Tuxedo: Hugo Boss via Nordstrom / Groomsmen’s Tuxedos: New York Bride & Groom / Groomsmen’s Gifts: Monogrammed Tumi Toiletry Kits / Rings: Tacori via Diamonds Direct