Southern Weddings

This week we’ve seen bright, colorful weddings and neutral, understated affairs, so today we bring you the perfect union of the two!  From the moment our lovely new intern, Sydney, showed me this Florida wedding from Goode Green Photography, Inc. and Heather Archdeacon Williams, I was struck by Courtney + Andrew’s clean, sophisticated color palate and bold splashes of rich purple, orange, pink and green accents.  How refreshingly original!  Inspired by Cinco de Mayo festivities, Courtney chose to dress up her bridesmaids’ simple stone-colored J.Crew frocks with bright, blooming bouquets from Nouveau Flowers while keeping the focus on her re-embroidered lace gown from the Elizabeth Filmore collection with classic ivory garden roses.  The newly-married couple’s portraits in front of the darling Seaside Interfaith Chapel are so sweet and carefree!  Check back soon for shots of Courtney + Andrew’s family-style reception (complete with an ultra-fab cake!).

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story. Andrew and I met in college at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas. We didn’t start dating however until three years later, just two months before Andrew graduated. The following summer and fall, I was interning in Washington, D.C, and Andrew ended up getting a position there as well that September. We had been casually dating until that point (especially since we had been in different states for most of our relationship ) but we suddenly found ourselves in this amazing city together.  We fell in love with our nation’s capitol and each other at the same time!
Describe the proposal. We were living in D.C. at the time and I was just coming home from a trip. Andrew picked me up from the airport and, when we walked into my apartment, all 550 square feet were covered in candles.  There was a box on my coffee table with three more boxes inside, each containing a poem Andrew had written that weekend while I was gone. The final box contained a key, which unlocked a box Andrew was holding in his hands. When the lock fell off, he dropped to one knee and asked me to be his wife.
A few adjectives that describe the day are: Colorful, casual elegance and fun.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding invitation?  I was originally inspired by a formal Cinco de Mayo dinner held in a garden in Washington, D.C. What I particularly loved about this event were the vibrant colors. Every table was covered in a different bright color. It managed to look beautiful and casually elegant, but fresh at the same time. I knew I wanted a lot of color in the wedding which led to the inspiration for a colorful vintage Mexican theme.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I tried on forty or fifty dresses in three different cities before finally choosing an Elizabeth Filmore dress in New York. I had never seen anything like it! The re-embroidered lace was just so beautiful and unique.
Were there any wedding traditions or new ideas you included in the wedding? We included wedding photos from our parents’ and grandparents’ weddings. Both our parents are still together so it was nice to honor them at our own wedding.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Andrew’s face as I walked down the aisle. He had this huge grin on his face and was shaking his head as if he was saying “I can’t believe you’re doing this to me! I actually might cry!” I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. That moment really reminded me what our wedding was about: each other.