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Category: Inspirations

Possibly because it feels like summer almost year-round in Florida, I always reach for this Sunshine State editorial from our ninth issue as the temperatures climb here in North Carolina. The vibrant color, thoughtful details, and Art Deco location add up to an inspiring look at how to make a wedding your own, especially if you’d like your celebration to reflect the destination you’ve chosen. Our St. Augustine location was a huge source source of inspiration for these photos, from the citrus and flamingo-inspired palette we used, to the tropical blooms Ashton Events arranged, to the graphic, Art Deco patterns that popped up throughout.

We’re so grateful to our longtime friend and Blue Ribbon Vendor Justin DeMutiis for capturing all the fun!

P.S. Spot any familiar faces in our beautiful bridal party? :)

Twinkle & Toast created the most beautiful and pop-y invitation suite to announce our colorful soiree. The die-cut invitation shape, inspired by Florida’s art deco pools, popped up several more times throughout the shoot.

Our bride’s bouquet, by Laura from Ashton Events, included Yves Piaget, Romantic Antique and Lemon Pompon garden roses; Coral Charm peonies; daffodil;, fritillaria; boronia; ranunculus; Mambo and Majolika spray roses; salal; fern; and gardenia.

Working with ghost chairs at your ceremony? Order vinyl cling-on names to mark reserved seating for loved ones.

It’s safe to say our whole team is obsessed with this tablescape, from the matte black chairs to the banded linen, colorful flowers, and poolside locale! Ashton Events, Wish Vintage Rentals, Luxe Party Rentals, and Kate Ryan Linens knocked it out of the park!

Planner, stylist, and florals: Ashton Events | Photographer: Justin DeMutiis | Film processing: Richard Photo Lab | Ceremony venue: St. Augustine Lightner Museum Garden Courtyard | Reception venue and catering: Casa Monica Hotel | Hair and makeup: Amanda Hopcraft | Cakes and desserts: The Pastry Studio | Popsicles: Hyppo Popsicles | Paper goods: Twinkle and Toast | Linens and rentals: Kate Ryan Linens | Rentals: Wish Vintage Rentals | Chargers: Luxe Party Rentals | Bride’s gown: Kate Spade New York | Bride’s veil: Yuri C. Wedding Shoppe | Bridesmaid dresses: Ralph Lauren | Menswear: The Black Tux | Bow ties: Rock Avenue

Ashton Events and Justin DeMutiis are delightful members of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

emily Written with love by Emily
3 Comments
  1. avatar Janna Toruno reply

    My bachelorette is going to be in St. Augustine! Love this Florida wedding inspiration! :)

  2. avatar Jennifer Anderson reply

    I love all the pops of color at this wedding! Makes me miss home! (I was raised in Florida!)

  3. avatar Kelsie reply

    What a beautiful wedding day!

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I’m about to get a little sappy, friends, and I’m not even ashamed of it.

No matter how many photos I’ve seen of anniversary sessions, I will literally never tire of them.

That’s because one of the most cherished dreams of my life is reaching old age with my husband, because that means we will have had the opportunity to live all of those years alongside each other – something that not everyone is so lucky to do.

If I am granted those years, I can’t help but think that I’ll look at the age spots on both of our hands with tenderness instead of regret or disgust (reactions which seem so common in our youth-obsessed culture). Those age spots will mean we’re still by each other’s side, holding each other’s hands. And in a world where it seems so easy for things to go wrong even for people who do everything right, that is nothing short of a miracle.

Friends, please enjoy these anniversary photos of Judi and Dave, by their friend, photographer Hannah Forsberg. And don’t miss the thoughts from all three of them, sprinkled throughout!

From Hannah: In a culture that often treats love and marriage as disposable, Judi and Dave are a couple that have a beautiful and rare story of just the opposite. Not only are they such a joy to be around and wonderful mentors, but they are also dear friends. I’ve had the privilege of watching their marriage for years and the way they love each other unconditionally is an inspiration and testament to the popular verse that is so often recited during weddings — “love never fails.”

While getting coffee with Judi and hearing her advice on love and marriage, I realized that I needed to share their story with the world. During the wedding planning process, it is so easy in this visually-driven society we live in to become caught up in the things that will pass away – forgetting that your marriage is what matters most and that it is hard work. Love goes beyond the wedding day. You only have your venue for a few hours, your flowers will fade, your wedding dress will go into storage, and your wedding album will be sitting on your living room table. But your marriage? That is what matters most and that is what will have the lasting effect. I hope that these images serve as a reminder that love is a commitment – a commitment of humility, patience, and forgiveness.

From Dave: Judi and I met in Cheyenne, Wyoming where I was serving in the Air Force and Judi was attending stewardess training for United Airlines. It was a short four and a half weeks of getting to know one another, but in that short time, we fell in love and promised to marry each other. The only obstacle was I had an overseas commitment left in my tour of duty. I was sent to Puerto Rico, and we began writing letters to each other every day for the next two years until I finished my tour of duty. After I was able to obtain leave of service, we became engaged over a New Year’s weekend on January 1st, 1963 at 12:01am. We married that same year in September after I was discharged.

What was important to both of us was to be together after waiting and being separated by distance for almost two years. We had hardly any money, so our wedding day was very simple. We loved each other, and that is what mattered. Our wedding was one bridesmaid, a borrowed wedding dress, and one best man in a church in Judi’s home town of Downers Grove, Illinois.

My favorite thing about Judi is that she loves learning and is very diligent in her pursuits. She makes wise choices with her gift of creativity, which is shown in every room in our home. She is always industrious, and I love telling others how much of a Proverbs 31 woman she has become in our almost 55 years of marriage. She works hard, plans ahead, respects me greatly, is a wise counselor, and is a wonderful model of a Godly woman.

From Judi: What I love about Dave is that he is a patient man, asks good questions, and is not a rash decision maker. I have learned a lot from him. He is conservative by nature, orderly and thorough at everything he does. I trust him implicitly. He is kind and generous and has given me a lot of freedom to develop my interests without demanding anything from me. Of course, this causes me to want to serve and love him more. The most honest thing that I can say about love is that love is learned behavior. It can be romantic, but often it is just living and serving each other, working together toward healthy living with family, children, parents, in-laws, etc. The biggest thing I’ve learned over the years and give as advice to other couples is to accept each other and don’t try to change the person. Pray for your spouse, ask God to make changes in YOU, and let God move your spouse’s heart.

Photographer: Hannah Forsberg | Film Lab: The Find Lab | Florist: Ginger Rose | Hair stylist and makeup artist: Erin Ryser | Calligraphy: Morphosis Studio | Cake: Gingerspice Bakery | Lace Top: BHLDN

emily Written with love by Emily
2 Comments
  1. avatar Lisa Hays reply

    What a sweet couple! They are indeed lucky to have had each other for such a great period of time. My husband and I were high school sweethearts who went our separate ways but came back together and blended 2 families. We knew we not might see 25 years but we are praying for 20 as he battles cancer. To all the sweet, young brides I say follow Judi’s wisdom and be thankful for every day since we are only promised today.

  2. avatar Sara Dunn reply

    Oh my gosh! What gorgeous photos. Don’t apologize for getting sappy, this is so beautiful. I hope my husband and I can do this 43 years from now ;)

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Sharing another one of my favorites from the archives today! I know spring is stereotypically for softer tones, but there’s something about a burst of color that seems wildly appropriate coming out of winter :) Enjoy this beauty from our ninth issue of the magazine! – Emily

The Greenbrier is one of those places that has always seemed so enchanting to me, so we jumped at the chance to hit the road to West Virginia and create an editorial there for Southern Weddings V9! From the colors and patterns, to the architecture, to the history, to the traditions wrapped up in this incredible property, there was an abundance of inspiration to pull from, and we had a blast meeting up with one of our favorite vendor teams (including Jaclyn Journey, Whitney Neal, and Carley Randall, who all made the trip from Kentucky) to bring this bold and colorful, but refined, shoot to life. Our story was inspired by the many real families who create sweet traditions at the Greenbrier–in this case, a girl whose grandmother takes her there for tea every year on her birthday. When it came time for her wedding, she couldn’t imagine a more meaningful or celebratory place to gather loved ones for a ceremony and reception…and afternoon tea, of course!

We’re so grateful to the fantastic weddings team at The Greenbrier for hosting us so graciously, and to the phenomenal team who helped us bring our Dorothy Draper-esque vision to life!

We were incredibly lucky to work with Momental Designs for this paper suite. Kristy had visited the Greenbrier before, and knew exactly how to translate their incredible patterns and plaster work into paper. She truly knocked it out of the park!

One of my favorite small details from this shoot: our sweet bride’s stylish little teal bow! And of course, that coral charm peony bouquet by Jaclyn Journey gets ALL the heart eyes.

Our bride and groom from this shoot are married in real life! It was so fun to meet West Virginia couple Astleigh and Pete and work with them on this project.

The Greenbrier is famous for its afternoon tea service (complete with a rendition of the Greenbrier Waltz!), so for this editorial, we opted to replace cocktail hour with afternoon tea! Our bride’s own 93-year-old grandmom joined us for these photos, and she was completely precious!! Pick up your copy of the magazine for more of the backstory here!

Any Bachelorette fans in the house? Emily Maynard made the Greenbrier love clock tradition famous, and we had fun indulging in it with our bride and groom, too!

Josh from McComas Video Productions put together the most wonderful behind-the-scenes film from our day at the Greenbrier – it really showcases the iconic property and all that went into this shoot!

Pick up your copy of the magazine in our shop or on newsstands around the South right now!

Planner, stylist, and florals: Jaclyn Journey | Photographer: Whitney Neal | Film processing: Richard Photo Lab | Videography: McComas Video Productions | Venue and pastries: The Greenbrier Resort | Hair and makeup: Carley Randall | Cake: Martine’s Pastries | Papers goods: Momental Designs | Calligraphy: Meant to Be Calligraphy | China: Southern Vintage Table | Linens: La Tavola Linens | Bride’s gown: “The Metropolitan Club” by Lela Rose | Bridesmaid tops: Macy’s | Grandmother’s skirt: Eliza J | Ring: Trumpet and Horn | Rings boxes: The Mrs. Box | Menswear: Menguin | Bow ties: Suited Man | Bride’s getaway dress: ModCloth

Whitney Neal and Jaclyn Journey are delightful members of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

emily Written with love by Emily
3 Comments
  1. avatar Vince Griff reply

    I hope couples start to use more colors like this at their weddings. It makes each of these images so fun and exciting! Really awesome post!!

  2. avatar 14photographers reply

    Love the colours on this!

  3. avatar Famzing Photography reply

    Absolutely love that card arrangement!

Southern Weddings reserves the right to delete comments which contain profanity or personal attacks or seek to promote a business unrelated to the post.  And remember: a good attitude is like kudzu – it spreads.  We love hearing your kind thoughts!

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