Georgia Weddings

Intimate and modern with a big ol’ side of romance, this is a wedding that is all about the pretty. Think an elegant Nicole Miller gown mix and mingling with sophisticated stylings, a crazy cool Bistro, VG setting and a foodie bride and groom who know a thing or two about throwing an awesome party.  See it all captured by Michelle Scott in the full gallery. 

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From the Bride… To describe the day in a nutshell: Better than I could have ever dreamed. In order for me to describe the day, I would have to go back a bit and describe how we got there. When my fiancé and I got engaged, we knew from the start we wanted a wedding that would be “us”. Not one of these mega blow-out weddings you go to or the chic fancy weddings you see in the magazines. We wanted something that spoke who we were as a couple. I am one who loves the small intimate gatherings, rustic yet elegant decor, beautiful but simple flowers and good food and wine. My fiancé, who is an executive chef at a private country club, focuses on food and wine first, then the surroundings. The good thing is that we both had the same vision when it came to our wedding. We wanted somewhere that was local, beautiful setting and, of course, good food. This is how we decided on Bistro VG. 

October 10, 2014 was a beautiful day. The temperature was perfect and not a cloud in the sky. For our wedding, we had rented out the back room at Bistro VG, a local restaurant in Roswell, Georgia that has been around for years.We had only invited thirty-two people; mostly just family and a few very important friends who had been big influences in our lives. The staff had transformed the back room into a mock chapel, and it looked beautiful. The rustic white painted brick walls, the linen chairs and elegant, yet simple flowers really made the room unique. I had made programs with my best friend that laid on every chair, and on the back we printed a thank you from my fiancé and me for everyone being there.

Our service was performed by a local minister who was amazing. She let us tailor our whole service to fit exactly what we wanted. One great idea that we did was a wine box and love letter time capsule. This went in place of the traditional candle lighting ceremony. Another aspect of the ceremony that I thought was great was the inclusion of my fiancé’s daughter. Not only am I saying ” I Do” to him, but also her, and we wanted her to know how much we both love her.

After our ceremony, we invited guest out front to the restaurant bar for cocktail, this was the perfect chance to go take some pictures. And let me tell you about our photographer, Michelle Scott – she was incredible. My fiancé had never met her, but when he did, he instantly felt comfortable. He’s not one to have his picture taken, but she just made it feel natural with no anxiety. We proceeded to take pictures with family before finishing with some shots of just the two of us outside. I do have to mention that she got some incredible shots of me getting ready and some timeless pictures of my dress.

After about forty five minutes of cocktails, we invited every one back into the back room, which had been transformed by the staff into one large communal dining table, outfitted with cream and tan linen, beautiful flower arrangements, candles and place cards that I had made. We decided to have platters of cheese and charcuterie out for our guest, and my now husband had a bourbon table out for anyone who would like bourbon. Our guest book was the Bouchon Cookbook by Thomas Keller (because food plays such a big role in our family it just felt appropriate and we thought it was unique) that guests could sign on any page they wished. Our cake table was beautiful. We had both the wedding cake and groom’s cake made by Frosted Pumpkin, two forks with Mr. & Mrs. on them,  a cake sever that had our names and date engraved on them, and more of the flowers we had chosen.

From then on, it was a very informal yet formal dinner. There were toasts, bottles of wine being opened and, of course, great food. One of the best and most fun parts of the night was the photos we took outside after dinner. We had asked Michelle if we could do pictures with sparklers to make a heart, dance in the lighted trees outside and she delivered. She was so fun to work with. She made taking pictures so fun, that we decided to run across the street and stand in the median while traffic was coming, just to capture the moment. And I do have to say that when we got our pictures back, I was blown away. They are incredible. My husband is a fan of black and white photos, and was not disappointed at all. Just to go back and look at them lets us relive it all over again.

After our pictures were over, we went back in, told our guest goodbye and jumped in our private car waiting for us and headed home as husband and wife. To some our wedding doesn’t seem like a lot, but to us it was the world. Having such a small intimate wedding at such a unique place with “us” written all over it was magical. I would never have wanted anything different. 

Photography: Michelle Scott Photography | Cake: Frosted Pumpkin Gourmet, Inc. | Invitations: Fine Stationery | Bride's Shoes: Badgley Mischka | Catering: Theo's Brothers Bakery | Groom's Attire: Hugo Boss | Groom's Suit: Hart Schaffner Marx | Wedding Venue: Theo's Brothers Bakery | Dress Designer: Nicole Miller | Garter: Fallen Star Couture Inc | Hair Pin: Charming Charlie

I don’t know about you, but Friday and a heaping dose of pink go together hand in hand in my book. And that’s exactly what Brita Photography is serving up for us this afternoon. Not only is this soiree sweetly covered in blush galore, but it’s pretty freaking adorable to boot. Did you see Jackson, the couple’s golden? He’s hanging out with the rest of the cuteness that the gallery holds.

From Brita Photography…We’re excited to share Emily & Stephen’s romantic outdoor wedding with you! I met Emily and Stephen (and their sweet dog Jackson!) for the first time at their engagement session. They were so easy going and natural in front of the camera, and I couldn’t wait for their wedding day. Emily and Stephen incorporated blush pink and gray colors into their wedding day; the bridesmaids picked out their own dresses at different stores, making the pictures so unique and beautiful. I love that the colors were the same, but the styles were completely different and matched each bridesmaids’ personality. The groomsmen coordinated with matching blush ties, gray suits, and fun pink socks!

I met up with Emily and all her bridesmaids in the bridal suite of Kimball Hall as they finished their last hair and makeup touches. Meanwhile, Nick was with Stephen and his groomsmen already getting a start on pictures. It was such a special day, and the love that Emily and Stephen share is the sweetest. Stephen and Emily absolutely adore each other and their emotion came through in every moment. They were such a joy to be around all day and I constantly caught myself smiling behind my camera (especially when editing their pictures)! I’m so happy that they did a “first look” because we were able to capture so many beautiful portraits around the gardens. They even brought along their sweet pup, Jackson, who wore the cutest pink bow tie! I hope you enjoy their beautiful wedding as much as we loved being a part of it!

Photography: Brita Photography | Wedding Coordinator: Kimball Hall | Floral Design: Kimball Hall | Wedding Dress: Carrie's Bridal Collection | Wedding Stationery: Minted | Ceremony Venue: Kimball Hall | Reception Venue: Kimball Hall | Catering: Talk Of The Town | DJ: Kimball Hall

When your engagement begins with an uber-romantic proposal in Paris (“love locks” included), you know your wedding is going to be something extra special.  The kind of wedding that exudes pure beauty from start to finish and is chock-full of heartwarming moments between beloved friends and family. This, my friends, is that wedding; a gorgeous purple-hued day set against the stunning Gardens at Great Oaks with an entire gallery of lovely captured by Scobey Photography.  Join me there for every ounce of pretty.

From the Bride… Tony and I were engaged in Paris, France on March 8th, 2012. He proposed on a bridge covered in locks near the Notre Dame. The locks are locked to the links on the bridge by lovers who write their name on their lock, attach it to the bridge, and throw the keys into the river to symbolize their infinite love for each other. Tony had written our names on a lock for the occasion, and when I tossed our keys into the river, he got down on one knee. The locks inspired us to have a wedding that had the feel of Paris – the watercolor purples of the Seine, the Old World lace, the romantic lovebirds nesting in the rafters of the buildings. And of course we had to include locks and keys!

We started planning for a wedding in Georgia where we’re both from. Historic Roswell was ideal in terms of location for our families and the many people traveling to our wedding – including us! We are current residents of Boston, MA, where Tony is in his last year of law school and I am a writer. Tony’s schedule made timing a wedding difficult, because law students don’t have a summer break. During the summer, law students are expected to work as summer associates at law firms, courthouses and the like. So our choices were to have the wedding during his Spring Break in early March, or in August during the small break between work and school. Although March 2013 would have been a lovely time because it was so close to our engagement date, the weather wasn’t what we had our hearts set on. So August it was, and the venue we loved – The Gardens at Great Oaks, just happened to have August 10th, 2013 open.

When the day arrived, it was magical. I remember being in my hotel room taking a shower and thinking, “Is this it? Is this real?” The bridesmaids, my mother and I got ready in a suite at the Doubletree Hotel in Roswell, GA. The makeup team from Brushworx was there to greet us and did all of our makeup and hair for the day. We got ready in robes I ordered on Etsy and enjoyed mimosas, Chick-fil-A biscuits, and Krispy Kreme doughnuts. I have missed those Southern staples! Lacey from Scobey Photography arrived halfway through the process and began taking pictures. Her enthusiasm was contagious and she had us all laughing. What I didn’t know is that she was trying to pump everyone up because there was a torrential downpour outside!

All week, it had rained every day, and it had rained around our ceremony time of 6:30 PM. I was worried but everyone assured me that if it rained, we’d figure something out. My fabulous wedding planner Pat Gardella had a plan B, C and D – but of course as a bride I was fretting over the details. As the time drew near, I saw the rain come pouring from the sky. Even on the way over, I thought there was no way I would have my outdoor ceremony. But when we arrived at the Gardens, it was like God had opened up the clouds just over the house, and the sun streamed through and bathed everything in a heavenly glow. It was a perfect daydream light that I feel really shows through in Lacey’s photos.

Like every other bride says, the rest of the day just flew! All my vendors were so professional that all I noticed was the great jobs they did.

Sarah Provow from Bloomin’ Bouquets helped my watercolor floral vision come to life. Wrapped around my bouquet is a handkerchief that belonged to my maternal great grandmother, and a cameo belonging to my late grandmother on my father’s side. There is also a lock that matches the key hanging from Tony’s boutonniere. The flowers include Rose Patience, Lisanthus Lavender, Garden Roses, Stock, Orchids, Hydrangeas and more. She also provided mercury class vases on the tables that gave a vintage feel. Other items on the table included pictures from Tony and my relationship, thank you notes, French styled lavender napkins, and table numbers that look like old vintage postcards sent from Paris ordered from Etsy. Sarah also set up the canvas with the picture someone grabbed in Paris of our proposal!

Outside in the yard were Cornhole (you know, the bean bag game) boards that were handmade and hand painted by my mother, Angie. They feature my alma mater and favorite team, the Alabama Crimson Tide, and Tony’s favorite team, the Florida Gators. The years listed are the years where the teams won national championships in football. People played during cocktail hour.

Also during cocktail hour we had a tour guide who gave tours of the Civil War era historical home. Our guests could see the beautiful rooms and hear the stories behind the antiques and the family history of the people who once lived there.

Another handmade item by my mother was the escort card board. She hand selected vintage keys and tied them to escort cards shaped like luggage tags. She took a corkboard, painted the frame, and put key fabric over it. It was so fun!

Tony and I ordered a birdhouse cardbox from Etsy with our wedding date and colors on it. Other bird details include mini guestbooks with lovebirds, and a lovebird cake topper purchased from Hallmark (they are actually salt and pepper shakers).

The signs for Signature Drinks and the thank you notes found at each place setting were worded, printed and cut by me. I purchased paper at Staples, downloaded some free fonts, and arranged them in Adobe Photoshop. Then I printed them and cut them to size. It was a great way to add detail while also thanking my guests in a personal way, since I am a writer.

I also made 120 wedding wands! I’m sure you lovely folks at SMP know what wedding wands are. I used two colors of ribbon and one strand of lace that I aged over a candle. It was a long process but a labor of love! One of the bridesmaid’s zipper broke, and we stuck a wedding wand in there to hide it. Voila! Wedding magic. They were handed out by my cousins before the ceremony and people used them to wave us on our trip down the aisle as husband and wife, as well as at the end of the night. And they were fun dance floor accessories, too!

The mustaches that hooked around the beer bottles were made by Tony’s friend as a gift to us. They were a hit! They make you look like you have a mustache while you drink your beer.

The Signature Drinks were the Mint to Be – Mint Vodka Sweet Tea with Mint Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, mint leaves from the garden, and sweet tea with a hint of lemon – and the Something Blue – a Blue Hawaiian.

The dinner menu was Southern and French – everything from Fried Buttermilk Chicken Tenders to a beautiful Roast Beef with Au Jus. Jerry Dilts & Associates did an amazing job.

Our cake was simple vanilla buttercream frosting over raspberry cake. But the cake the guest enjoyed were actually petit fours in all kinds and flavors – fruit tarts, chocolate truffles, etc. And they were delivered on a French pastry cart that Tony’s mom Tina found at an antique store. We donated it to the venue afterwards – people loved it!

After the drinking and dancing, the party was over much too soon. On our way to the limousine, our guests tossed French lavender and waved their wedding wands. It was the perfect end to our perfect day. I hope you feel it was as dreamy as we did.

Photography: Scobey Photography | Wedding Planner: The Gardens at Great Oaks | Floral Design: Bloomin’ Bouquets: Unique Floral and Event Design | Wedding Dress: Casablanca | Cake: Douceur De France | Ceremony Venue: The Gardens at Great Oaks | Reception Venue: The Gardens at Great Oaks | Bridesmaids Dresses: J.Crew | Catering: Jerry Dilts & Associates | Hair and Make Up: Brushworx Hair & Makeup | DJ: Eric Anthony Productions | Groom's Attire: Macy's | Groomsmen's Attire: Men's Wearhouse | Bridal Jewelry: Tiffany & Co. | Photography - Assistance: Chil Studios

Buffy Dekmar has a way of capturing weddings that always leave me weak in the knees. She just has this amazing talent of snapping up the most beautiful moments in the loveliest of lights leaving us with weddings like this one that is happily sitting in a league of its own. With its southern charm and perfect details, this is just as pretty as it gets, folks. See it all here.

The couple’s family and friends traveled from all over the country to celebrate their wedding, so Katie and Sean wanted to show them a truly southern wedding. Their styling, menu, and venue choices accomplished that beautifully, and a good time was had by all!

Photography: Buffy Dekmar Photography | Floral Design: Primrose Cottage | Cake: Publix Bakery | Shoes: Kate Spade | Bridesmaids Dresses: David's Bridal | Catering: A Divine Event | Makeup: Mimosa Salon and Spa | Hair: Colours Salon | DJ: Black Tie Events | Wedding Venue: Primrose Cottage | Bagpipes: Gig Masters - PartyPosh | Bridal Salon: Bridals By Lori

Some people wake up and need a big, steaming cup of coffee before they can really start their day. I wake up and need a good dose of pretty. And today? We are getting that dose by way of this seriously stunning Georgia soiree from Rustic White Photography. With a Bride so lovely she doesn’t look real, in a gown so gorgeous, it looks like it was made just for her – each image has me more in love with this wedding than the one before, so get your extra dose of pretty this morning right here.

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From the Bride… We had a sunny afternoon wedding in November, with a reception at an historic Southern home, so I wanted to take advantage of the beautiful colors and textures of the season; hence our eggplant, crimson and yellow color scheme and burlap table runners. Because it was in the afternoon, I hoped to create a casual but elegant atmosphere. My gown and my bridesmaids’ dresses were long, soft and flowing, but not overly formal. I developed a bird theme, which was mostly inspired by our favors, which I found on Pinterest before we got engaged! They were homemade bird feeders made by my mom, mother-in-law, myself and my grandmothers. We also had a bird-nest on our cake, head table, and bird table number holders. Distressed bird houses found at a fabric store and miss-matched antique vases in our color scheme scavenged by my mom and me from local antique markets (and our basement) gave our reception a rustic and colorful look.

Many of my ideas came from Pinterest, including our favors, our advice tree (a bare tree where people could hang notes or marriage advice), my cake, putting pictures of our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents’ weddings around our reception, many of our favorite photographs, and my dress. All of the bridal and bridesmaid/mother jewelry was purchased from Etsy.com. Each bridesmaid wore a necklace with a silver bird charm, a pearl, and her birthstone. Much of my bridal ensemble was made by my mom and myself. I was inspired by a beautiful but expensive designer gown on Pinterest and decided to mimic it. I found a soft, simple dress and designed sheer cap sleeves with Swarvoski pearls and rhinestones which my mom was able to make for me! Each stone was sewn lovingly by hand. I made my garter and my headpiece, and my mom made me a simple veil for the ceremony that could detach from my headpiece. My mom also had a very special handkerchief made for me; it was one of my great-grandmother’s hand-made hankies with the name of every woman in my family tree, as far back as we could find, embroidered on it. I wrapped it around my bouquet.

Traditionally, groomsmen match the bridesmaids and the groom matches the bride, but we went for neutral (black) vests for all of the men, but gave my husband a purple tie, while the groomsmen and dads were in champagne and silver. My husband’s pop of color looks great in pictures! The groomsmen also got an extra dose of nerdiness and humor with another Pinterest-inspired idea of wearing super-hero t-shirts under their suits, making for some entertaining pictures.

Some of my favorite memories were the dances I did with my husband and father. Both were very nervous about their moments in the spotlight, so only about a week before the wedding, I choreographed both dances. Having choreographed steps made both guys less nervous and they ended up having a blast! Not to mention our guests loved the personal touch of the dances.

One of our money-savers was the fact that we used bird houses and a small bud arrangement on every other table instead of large bouquets on each table; we also used the bridesmaid bouquets to decorate the head table. We found the burlap for 40% off at JoAnn fabrics, and my mother cut all the runners herself. We also used an antique Hudson, a car rebuilt and owned by my bridesmaid’s father, as our getaway car, and her dad was kind enough to be our chauffeur!

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Wedding Photography: Rustic White Photography | Cinematography: Brody Bearden Films | Floral Design: Findlay Rowe Designs | Ceremony Venue: Catholic Church of St. Ann | Reception Venue: Roswell Founder’s Hall | Wedding Dress: Alfred Angelo (customized by Bride’s Mother)

Good morning, SMP Georgia and a happy Monday to you!  It’s been two whole days since we last saw you, so I know you are ready for some pretty, pretty inspiration and a bundle of fabulous details to make you swoon.  Well, have no fear, lovelies, because we have you totally covered this morning, all thanks to this beyond gorgeous Kimball Hall wedding and Brenda Upton Photography.  Boasting lovely coral and gray hues, a fabulous garden ceremony, one very stunning gown and some seriously beautiful blooms by Pat Holland’s Flowers, this is what I call a perfect Southern soiree.  Plus, a menu filled to the brim with comfort foods!  How awesome is that?!?  Click here for even more!

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From the Bride… Brad and I both grew up in Georgia and wanted to portray simple, Southern style throughout our wedding.  We stumbled upon a venue just miles from our parents’ houses.  Kimball Hall is an Antebellum-style home in Roswell, GA which is owned and run by a very hands-on Julie Stephens.  We fell in love on our first visit – both with the venue and with Julie.

Our colors were a salmon-y coral with gray and pewter accents. We wanted to keep a casual, comfortable feel for the wedding where everyone could really enjoy themselves – we had a candy bar, flip flops for dancing, and koozies. We knew we wanted to have an outdoor ceremony despite our wedding being in the hot, humid month of August.  Kimball Hall has a beautiful backyard which was brightened up with beautiful florals in corals, pinks, creams, and greens.  In an effort to keep guests comfortable in the heat, I created the handmade program fans – one side the program and the other side various vintage wallpaper print cardstock.

My little 2.5 year old nephew, Finch, pulled off the ring bearer role like a pro!  Instead of a traditional guestbook which we thought we’d rarely look at, we had a large porcelain platter made with our names and the date which guests signed with special pens.  Once baked, the signatures are permanent and the platter can be used to serve food or comes with a stand for display.  We used mason jars throughout for both flowers and drinks.  Our signature cocktail was Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka with lemonade – a hit with the guests!  Our menu was Southern comfort food and included boiled peanuts served in small paper bags, mini pork sliders, short ribs, lemon chicken, squash puree, corn off the cob, grilled potato salad, and fried green tomatoes.  My side of the family is Italian and it’s tradition to have a wedding cake with the filling of an Italian pastry called a cannoli – a sweet, creamy ricotta filling with chocolate chips.  Brad is a giant tech geek so we had a chocolate, peanut butter iPad cake made for the groom’s cake.  For our exit, we got creative and my mom and I made ribbon wands with different shades of pinks, corals, and silvers for guests to wave at Brad and me as we left.  All in all, it was a great, fun night and I received what I consider to be the best compliment several times – “your wedding was SO perfectly you and Brad!”

I couldn’t have pulled it off without the help and support of my mom…and a 7 month obsession with Etsy. My advice to other brides would be to really enjoy and take it all in!  Your wedding week and especially the day will go by so fast.  Be sure to stop every so often to soak it all in!

Wedding Photography: Brenda Upton Photography / Flowers: Pat Holland’s Flowers / Wedding Cake: Pretty Cakes by Meg / Wedding Ceremony + Reception Location: Kimball Hall, Julie Stephens / Wedding Invitations: The Occassional Hello Stationery / Wedding Dress: Val Stefani / Catering: Cathy of Avalon Catering

I love the name of this wedding venue  ~ Primrose Cottage. Conjures up all sorts of magical, romantic images. And since Laura Stone of Artstar is the photographer for the day ~ voilá! LOTS of magical, romantic images! See the whole gallery here!

Matt and I met at work, and after a couple of years passing each other in the halls and a mutual colleague playing cupid, he finally asked me out! Nearly a year later, he proposed and the wedding planning began. I’ve never been a girl that thought about my wedding, so I basically started from scratch. I did know I wanted to get married outside in the fall and in an old Southern house, and Matt liked those ideas as well. Since we live in NYC but got married in Georgia (I’m from there), my mom scouted out a bunch of locations for us and showed us the best places one weekend when we were visiting. We instantly fell in love with Primrose Cottage and knew it was the place.

In my mind, I was trying to go for a Parisian bohemian chic feel, though I don’t know that I really achieved that. I originally wanted peonies, until I realized how expensive they are out of season! So I brought a picture of a garden/wildflower bouquet — which were also all out season — to our floral designer and she picked out flowers similar to them and they were AMAZING. The flowers were one of my favorite parts. Overall, it was a perfect day. We had no stress and were able to just enjoy all of the little moments surrounded by our family and friends. The weather was perfect, too!

Special thanks to Primrose Cottage and their in-house food and design team, Magic Moments. They did a great job and made our day extra special and stress-free. Also, a huge thanks to Laura Stone and Renee Brock from Arstar Photography. They are amazing photographers, and we love every picture they took. We couldn’t be happier with the way everything turned out.

More of Blair and Matt’s stunning fall wedding at Primrose Cottage on Artstar’s Blog!

Photography: Artstar by Laura Stone / Ceremony & reception venue: Primrose Cottage / Catering & Cake: Primrose Cottage / Dress: Lazaro from Bridals by Lori / Shoes: Nina / Headband: Rivini / Hair and makeup: Three-13 Salon / Invitations: Bella Figura / Place cards and table numbers: The White Aisle / Suits (Matt and his brother): Custom-made, Heimie’s Haberdashery, St. Paul, Minnesota / Ties: Hugo Boss / Shoes: Prada / Flower girl dresses: Us Angels / DJ: Black Tie Events

We’ve been lovin’ all your tweets about SMP’s new Inspiration Board Builder and from the sound of it, you guys are lovin’ IT!  Although we (the SMP editors) have been using the original version of the Inspiration Board Builder (f o r e v e r), this one is new to us too! So … I decided I needed to give it a whirl this weekend! See what all of the hullaballoo is all about.  I thought it would be cool to create some teaser IBB’s based on next Monday’s features from Artstar by Laura Stone.  So, here’s the first … a super-sassy styled photo-shoot entitled “{fall} in love”!

Piqued your curiosity? More tomorrow!  {our entire gallery is here}

Next one … Lauren & Mark’s Barnsley Garden Wedding …

Remember, guys, you can click on ANY image in ANY of the image boards on SMP and it will take you straight to the whole gallery! Or ~ you can wait ’til we say “click here for the whole beautiful gallery”!

And if those two don’t get you, surely this one will. Blair & Matt’s Primrose Cottage Wedding …

Tune in bright and early on Abby’s Little Black Book Blog for the full Real Wedding features from Artstar by Laura Stone.

You can see these and MANY more on Laura’s blog!

**I’ve gotta’ admit, SMP’s new board builder is pretty addicting!