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I know Emily Post (and our own Emily) are very clear that guests should not, under any circumstances, wear white to weddings, but this Georgia-based couple specifically asked friends and family to don white to their summer wedding.  And you know what?  I wouldn’t have thought an all-white wedding could work, but Meredith + Rodney show us how a colorless celebration can be modern, fun and effortlessly chic.  Jeremy Harwell’s crisp images of the couple’s backyard wedding only highlight the clean color palate and all-white accents coordinated by planner, Meredith Webb of a A Legendary Event.  While it’s certainly bad form to take the bride’s signature color (unless otherwise instructed by your hosts!), it’s the unanimous office decision that the guests’ attire at all detracted from the Meredith, in a sophisticated Priscilla of Boston gown.  The square, rhinestone-studded confection from The Frosted Pumpkin added the perfect touch of glamour to this otherwise clean, summery wedding.  Like this idea for your own warm weather nuptials?  Be sure to visit the photographer’s blog!

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story.  We met at work  We both worked for a company called Dixie Homecrafters. After about a year, Rodney decided to pursue.  We started dating in March of 2003 and the rest is history.
Describe the proposal.
  The proposal, if you want to call it, that was almost not a proposal at all.  Rodney asked me to set up some appointments to look at rings.  I set up the appointments and we went from store to store gathering information.  At one store, I saw the ring that I had sketched years ago but had never seen in any store.  Rodney noticed my excitement and he went up the counter, paid for the ring and told them to size it.  I asked what he was doing and he said, “I’m buying the ring; don’t you want it?”  I said yes, of course!  We left the store to go have lunch, and then we went back to pick up the ring.   He put the on my finger and asked me if I liked it.  When I asked if this meant we were engaged, he nonchalantly said yes.  And that was that!
Three words that describe your wedding:
Unforgettable, beautiful and fun.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding:
The design was inspired by our home. I wanted to incorporate something for Rodney because the groom often gets forgotten in all the planning, so I chose to have everything done in white since it’s his favorite color.  I even asked all of the guests to wear white!
What was your favorite design element? 
My favorite design element was the all-white everything and the beautiful tents.
Tells us about finding your wedding dress. 
Finding a dress was simple! I went alone to Priscilla of Boston and tried on about five dresses, then narrowed it down to two before settling on one.  I bought the dress about two weeks after we were engaged! 

Written with love by Katharine
1 Comment
  1. avatar EL reply

    Simply gorgeous!

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Heaven.  I am officially in my wedding heaven.  Humor me here while I indulge in my gold, black + white wedding fantasy.  Kristen + Grant’s reception at The Cloister Clubroom on St. Simons Island in Georgia is literally dripping with luxe crystal details and gold accents, but what I really like is how the happy couple gave their elegant affair a sophisticated update with chic feather accents (did you see the plume on their four-tiered confection from Natasha Zeal of the Sea Island Culinary Team?) and subtle black details.    And the lighting – oh the lighting! – is really spectacular.   (Note to self: must add this wedding to my inspiration folder.)  Emily is going to make fun of me if I don’t stop gushing, so, for your sakes, I will, with just one question: this wedding really is something, right?

Describe your wedding flowers: The chapel had such a beautiful, simple elegance that we decided not to use any flowers. Instead, we used two tall arrangements of white ostrich plumes by the altar.  Rose at the cloister did such an amazing job on the flowers! On the head table, we had a trumpet vase filled with lush, fragrant all-white garden arrangements featuring hydrangea, stock, lisianthus, vivianne spray roses and heiress garden roses with plumes of white ostrich feathers rising from the center. The look was completed by the addition of hanging Swarovski crystals, beaded crystal votives and cut crystal candlesticks along the entire length of the table.  In my bouquet, I carried white heiress garden roses accented with feathers and Swarovski crystals. The bouquet was wrapped in silk and pinned with Grant’s great grandmother’s vintage brooch.
Describe your wedding cake: 
The cake was gorgeous! So gorgeous, in fact, that we had it displayed in the center of the room. It was so close to the dance floor, I was afraid a guest might fly into it while dancing! I knew I wanted to include the ostrich feathers and the crystals in the cake and the Sea Island culinary team did such a great job designing it!  It had huge ostrich plumes coming out of the top.  We wanted to create a chandelier effect with crystals on the cake, so we hung Swarovski crystals from the top layer. The cake was also covered in sugar crystals which looked so amazing against the candlelight and crystals.
Were there any wedding traditions or new ideas you included in the wedding?
Everyone knows that I love a good costume party, so we decided to have a “fancy dress box” on the dance floor. We had a vintage trunk filled with boas, top hats, gloves, canes, mustaches, fake jewels and feathered headbands. It really took the party to a whole new level! Everyone was dressed in costume by the end of the night.  We had so much fun and the pictures are priceless.  In addition, I asked all of the guests to wear silver, black or gold and the women to wear floor length gowns. It really added to the glamour of the night. All of my friends and family looked like movie stars and the pictures were amazing.  Also, Grant’s uncle Zeke (the judge who married us) and his wife Linda had a beautiful vase made out of the glass that Grant stomped on at the end of the ceremony. It is now proudly displayed in our living room as a wonderful reminder of our wedding day.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? 
Grant insists his favorite part of the wedding was seeing me walk down the aisle!  For me, it was when Grant and I snuck down to the boat dock to be alone for a few minutes in between courses.  It was very dark and there was one single chandelier hanging from the tree above us. The wedding planner had left the 40’s music from the cocktail reception playing on the terrace, so Grant and I had a single dance there under the chandelier next to the water. It was one of the sweetest, most romantic moments of my life.
Funniest Moment:
During the ceremony, Grant accidentally said “I do” before being asked!  So adorable!
Did you write your own vows?  If so, what was your favorite phrase, verse or line?
We both knew that we wanted our ceremony to be short and sweet! Grant was raised Jewish and I was raised Christian so we created our own ceremony in which we could celebrate the traditions of both religions. It turned out to be a very intimate and special ceremony! We had so many guests comment on how sweet and unique it was. We also had a special part in the ceremony where we honored our grandparents who had passed. I was very close to my Grandmother Haralson, so that had extra special meaning for me.
Fun Fact:
We were married on the same day as JFK and Jackie O’!
What’s next for you as a couple?  What are you looking forward to in the future?
We are really looking forward to our long-awaited honeymoon in Greece!

Congratulations, Kristen + Grant!  Enjoy your fabulous honeymoon!

Written with love by Katharine
8 Comments
  1. avatar CharlestonLover reply

    This is hands down my favorite wedding you’ve ever posted. I think the bride and I must be soul sisters because it is so similar to the wedding I’m planning in Charleston, right down to the casual oyster-roast rehearsal dinner. Amazing. So much inspiration to take from this.

  2. avatar Tessa, Utah Bride and Groom reply

    In answer to your question…absolutely! From the chandeliers to the black bow ties to the white plumes, this wedding is dripping with class and style. Love, love, love!

  3. avatar Melesha reply

    The ostrich feathers look spectacular.

  4. avatar Jacquelyn reply

    Wow…just….WOW.

  5. avatar April reply

    This is a very nice formal wedding. The decors are quite elegant, with the fabulous table settings, the exquisite flower table centerpieces, all together remarkably timeless! My favorite photo is the driveway being lit with fireworks. Great shot!

  6. avatar Sandi Sansom reply

    Classic. Elegant. Beautiful. I love this wedding, especially the touches of old Hollywood glamour!

  7. avatar Diana reply

    Wow – beautiful! Love the sparklers!

  8. avatar Ashley reply

    One of the most beautiful weddings that I have ever seen. I adore the old hollywood glamour feel. Absolutlely stunning! Thanks for sharing it will us all!

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Why yes, I do adore this Gatsby-inspired wedding from The Parsons, thank you very much!  (If you’re a regular here, you probably already knew that, though.)  But, seriously, classic black – make that white – tuxedoes with sharp bowties, a chic and sophisticated Palazzo gown, a bouquet of all-white roses courtesy of Rose Sinclair at the Sea Island Florist?  Kristen + Grant’s upscale black tie affair, held at the Sea Island Chapel, makes my traditional heart go pitter-patter.  Add in the fact that this beautiful couple tied the knot in the Southland (Georgia, to be precise) and you pretty much have my recipe for a perfect Southern wedding.

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story.  A mutual friend, Thom, had been trying to set us up for months. He invited me to a happy hour and brought Grant, and we ended up flirting most of the night. Grant claims that he knew he wanted to marry me that night. (So sweet!)  Soon after we met, he asked me out for sushi. After dinner and a lot of sake, we literally shut down the restaurant. Grant was living in San Diego, but also had an office in Chicago where he worked a lot. After dating a couple of months, I somehow managed to convince him to move from the warm and sunny beaches of San Diego to Chicago in the middle of the winter.  Now that’s love!   He moved to Chicago, then we both moved to Denver, Colorado a year later and the rest is history!
Describe the proposal. 
It was Super Bowl Sunday and a powder day so we decided to forgo watching the game and head to nearby Breckenridge to ski. We both love to ski so I expected nothing out of the ordinary. Breckenridge boasts the highest lift in North America, which I’d been dying to tackle. Mid-day, Grant casually asked if I wanted to head up to the top. We jumped on the lift and, when we got to the top, I skied on, anxious to get down (I’m afraid of heights). When I turned around, Grant was on his knees on his snowboard about 20 feet away from me. He then started inching awkwardly toward me in the snow. I was cracking up! I had no idea what he was doing and was urging him to hurry up. When he finally got to me, he was exhausted but still able to say, “Will you marry me?” I was shocked, but absolutely thrilled!
Three adjectives that describe the day are: 
Can I say four? Vintage, elegant, unforgettable and FUN!!
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? 
The Cloister hotel in Sea Island, Georgia.  Grant’s family has a home in St. Simon’s, Georgia where we have been vacationing together since we started dating. It is one of our favorite places on Earth! We knew we wanted to get married there and the Cloister proved to be the perfect spot. We loved the glamour and rich history of the old hotel combined with the rustic marsh in its backyard. The Cloister was built in 1928 and has since become a legend in the South. We wanted to celebrate the Cloister’s history with a theme that romanticized old-Hollywood glamour the 30’s and 40’s. The Clubroom at The Cloister, where we had our reception, is absolutely stunning: a perfect backdrop with its breathtaking vintage chandeliers, old-school charm and antiqued mirrored panels.
What was your favorite design element of your big day?  
The unbelievable vintage chandeliers in The Clubroom. I am just in love with them! The room was filled with candlelight that just looked amazing bouncing of the chandeliers. We wanted to bring the glamour and drama of the chandeliers into the outdoor areas of our wedding so we hung more chandeliers from the old oak trees on the terrace and in the garden. They were so amazing!
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: 
Instead of doing the traditional sendoff in a fancy car, we used a good family friend’s vintage restored CJ7.  Over time, it became a tradition of ours in St. Simon’s to take the jeep to watch the sunset on the marsh. We knew the jeep had to be part of the wedding!  And even though it rained the night of our wedding, my two brothers-in-law drove the Jeep home for us in their tuxes. They were soaked and loved every minute of it!
Tell us about finding your wedding dress:
I was the girl that had to try on hundreds of dresses before I found “the one.” (I actually ended up buying two wedding dresses when it was all said and done.) I bought the first dress in Savannah, Georgia when I was on a wedding planning trip with my Mom and Aunt Nancy.  I was newly-engaged and overly excited, to say the least. I found a gorgeous Reem Acra dress and bought it on impulse. I think I got swept up in the idea of getting a dress that day even though I had not tried many dresses on. When I returned to Denver, I had the sinking feeling that I had made a mistake. After months of trying on dresses in multiple cities, I found the one! It was so sleek and glamorous, just like what I imagined a 40’s Hollywood starlet would wear.  I learned my lesson the hard way. Take your time ladies!! It’s the most important dress you will ever wear!

Written with love by Katharine
3 Comments
  1. avatar Adair reply

    Where did she get her dress, I am looking for something similar and I love hers! Beautiful Wedding!!

  2. avatar Southern Weddings reply

    Hi Adair! Kristen’s stunning gown is from Palazzo. Hope that helps!

  3. avatar Adair reply

    I think I found it! No retailers in Florida, though. Thank you

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