I first met Michele my freshman year of college at Virginia Tech, where she lived with my best friend from high school. I can still vividly remember how jealous I was that Danielle ended up with a normal, cute, fun roommate…my dorm story was quite different ;) Last year, about 8 years after I first met Michele, she contacted me about doing her wedding and I was beyond thrilled. She and her family were the absolute best clients…super easy going and extremely interested in having my company do as much as we could. Her wedding was captured beautifully by Echard Wheeler…here are some of the shots!
The ceremony was held at Trinity Church/First Baptist Church at the oceanfront.
Michele and the girls got ready at her house, with the help of her mother. How sweet is this moment captured by Echard!?
Another amazingly emotional picture of Michele and Matt speaking to each other before they walked down the aisle…pure love!!
The programs were made to incorporate a piece of art that was displayed at the wedding…their family tree! And Michele’s ring….where do I even begin?! Gorgeous!!
For the ceremony, Michele was really worried about the church’s backdrop…a huge lamb. Since it was going to be the background to all of her ceremony pictures, we decided to cover it. Using 3 panels of burlap, two of white sheers, and some burlap bows, we were able to create a subtle backdrop that went along with the rest of the elements throughout the wedding! Here’s an i phone picture of the before and after…
I created two large arrangements to flank the aisle using hydrangeas, queen anne’s lace, and bells of Ireland. We then tied burlap ribbons at the end of each pew and tucked a small bunch of baby’s breath into each one.
Here’s some ceremony action shots!
After the ceremony, they did family pictures and then started with the bridal party pictures…here’s Matt and his boys.
And here’s Michele and her ladies…
For Michele’s bouquet, I attempted to re-create a picture she found on Pinterest using flowers that were in season and reasonably priced. Here’s the inspiration picture:
And here’s the final product using peonies, ranunculus, dahlias, maidenhair fern, spray roses, and baby green hydrangeas. The girl’s bouquets added some color to the mix without being too flashy!!
And here’s some more great detail shots showcasing the bouquet…
Their whole beach session has this dreamy ethereal quality…mostly because Echerd Wheeler was involved, but also because we had a rare break from the rain that poured down alllll dayyy longgg!!
After the newlyweds were announced into the reception, which was held at the Water Table, they moved right into their first dance (above and below). I’m not usually a huge black and white fan, but look at this image. How could I not share it?!
The table centerpiece décor varied between a trio of twine wrapped vases with a burlap square and a large rustic box with a burlap runner. I felt a huge sense of pride for these particular rental pieces because I actually made them all………like I tore apart pallettes, used a table saw, skill saw, nail gun, stained them, etc…..cool, right?! The wooden blocks were the perfect table number holders and tied the boxes in with the other décor seamlessly.
The venue itself underwent a transformation since the last time I was there. I was happily surprised to see these gorgeous new chandeliers!
Here’s a peek at how we sat the guests. The escort cards were tied with baker’s twine onto an old mint room divider/screen. How adorable! The cake also had a quirky Etsy find as a cake topper. So cute, so original, and so totally Michele!!
The guests got pretty fun towards the end of the night, shaking it like I haven’t seen before. Even grandma got down…
At the end of the night, the Conley’s were escorted out of the building and off to their honeymoon with sparklers!
Thank you so much to the Stewart/Conley families for allowing us to be a part of your special day!!
Another special thank you to all of the vendors involved:
Photographer: Echard Wheeler Photography {here’s a link to his blog on their wedding}
Planner/Florist: Style by Design
Rental Décor: Styled
DJ: DJ on the Side
Caterer: Chef by Design
Ceremony Venue: First Baptist Church
Ceremony Musicians: Josh and Brianna Card
Reception Venue: The Water Table
Transportation: A Goff Limo
Cake: Lynette Rohring
Hair: Carrie Bright
XOXO